More than this
by Aveira
Summary: Yuffie's world is slowly collapsing all around her, her father, country and heart all seem to be working against her, or is it toward a much greater purpose. Lots of Cid swearing and possible Cloud angst. Rated M. Yuffentine Cloti Post AC DoC
1. Where it starts

_Hey, I added to this chapter and will probably be doing the same to a few others. I kind of just make up stuff if I can't remember it so feel free to correct me if I totally screw up FF7 and it's characters. It's just back story so what's going on makes more sense. Sorry for the long ass wait, school kind of took over. Thanks for reading - Ave _

_ I don't own any of them, not a single one. And the lyrics in there are from 'Forsaken' by Within Temptation._

* * *

'_Now, the day has come. We are forsaken…this time.' Yuffie sat silent and still, obediently listening to her mother as she spoke in her sing song voice. She knew, with the wisdom she had gained in her now five years of life, that this was not the usual bedtime song, this was something serious. Her heart began to pound fiercely beneath its prison of bone, she closed her eyes tight, trying to block out the sudden rush of fear that overtook her._

'_We lived our lives in our paradise, as gods we shaped the world around. No borderlines we'd stay behind, though balance is something fragile.' Yuffie shifted as the pounding in her chest grew in intensity. She wanted nothing more than for her mother to stop talking. _

_'While we thought we were gaining, we'd turn back the tide, it still slips away. Our time has run out, our future has died, there's no more escape.'_

'_I'm scared, kasan.' Yuffie's voice sounded small. Weak even. She cleared her throat, her mother turned and smiled softly at the child. Yuffie's lip began to tremble._

'_Hush, little one. You have nothing in the world to fear. Your fate takes you far beyond this night.' Yuffie sprung from her seat on her bed and threw her small body at her mother. _

'_Kisaragi-san,' A whisper quiet voice called from behind the shoji door. Yuffie stiffened in her mothers arms._

'_Hai.' Her voice took on a darker tone. Yuffie knew what this meant. _

'_Lord Godo has summoned for you.' The owner of the voice disappeared as quickly and silently as it had come. _

'_Kasan…please-'Yuffie struggled through a sob. Her mother gently kissed the top of her head._

'_You are my waking dream, Yuffie Kisaragi. The flame of hope burns brightest in your eyes.' Her eyes shone with a certain resignation Yuffie saw often when it came to the duties surrounding her mother. _

_Her mother, Lady Tsukiko Kisaragi, was the guiding force behind the men who made war. Her brilliance in strategy was matched only by her unparalleled beauty. She worked in conjunction with Staniv and Godo to come up with strategies and peace treaties. This time however, there was no treaty or any plans for even defending themselves. The Shinra army, lead by General Sephiroth, was being kind enough to simply allow them to keep their lives. The desperation Yuffie felt was reflected in her mothers eyes. _

'_I love you, kasan.' Yuffie said softly as her mother tucked her in. 'He wont let you get hurt…he-' She broke off with a yawn. 'You're too special.' Tsukiko stood gracefully, straightening her long kimono, the whites and multiple blue hues somewhat muted by the single lit candle beside Yuffie. _

'_Now the day has come, we are forsaken. There's no time anymore, life will pass us by. We are forsaken, we're the last of our kind.' With that she was gone, leaving only the soft scent of ginger and the ocean behind. _

* * *

"Welcome to the Golden Saucer!" a pleasant looking woman called as people of all shapes and sizes filed into the building. "Enjoy your stay!" She seemed unstoppably happy and cheerful. Cloud glanced behind him only to see Cid and Yuffie glaring daggers at each other. They'd been fighting since Costa Del Sol. Something about Yuffie's lunch and a now dirty pair of expensive boots. Cloud sighed, it's not like she could help it. She'd gotten to be more tolerant of air travel, but she still gets air sick. He really did feel bad for her, not that he'd ever let her know. She'd just insist on following him around instead of Red or Vincent. But still, Cid shouldn't make her run around for him while she's up there.

"Hey," Cloud tried to get a word in as the two started yet another shouting match.

"You're a pretty lousy driver!" She yelled.

"You're a damn terrible ninja!" Cid spat.

"I can't help getting motion sickness, ok?! Gods, it's not like I went out of my damn way to puke on those stupid boots! Besides, you have freaking eight pairs of the same damn thing!" She was bristling with anger.

"I knew we shouldn't have brought you along. You immature little brat! You're completely useless and-"

"HEY!" Cloud yelled, suddenly feeling very defensive for the girl. "Shut it, Cid! She gets it!" He wasn't quick to anger, but anyone would be on their last nerve after two long, torturous hours of this.

"No she doesn't! She's-" again he was interrupted.

"Gone…" came Vincent's gruff voice.

"Some terrible ninja…" Cloud grumbled at Cid. "Good job, now she's wandering around, she'll probably steal something, get caught and, get us all in trouble. Great work Cid. Way to be the _mature _adult here." Cloud huffed as he turned to go find Yuffie. Cid simply glared and stalked off to a nearby bar.

"Wow, haven't seen him lose his temper like that since we were kids." Tifa laughed as she walked up to stand between Red, Vincent ,and Barret. "You guys didn't see her move?" Tifa rubbed her chin thoughtfully.

"I wasn't even paying attention." Barret sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. Red simply shook his head. "Cloud'll find her. She's not gonna run off too far." Barret said after a moment of silence.

"I suppose. She's probably just off trying to blow off steam." Tifa sighed. "That was the longest flight _ever_. Those two never stop!" she said throwing her arms up in defeat.

"I'm going to look for her." Vincent said quietly and turned to leave before either had time to respond.

"Guess I should too. What about you? You gonna go look or go waist your gil?" She giggled a little at her own joke.

"Ha ha. I'm goin' to waist some gil. The brat'll come back. We can't get rid of her that easy." He smiled back at the little brunette.

"But would you really want to?" With that she turned to go look for Yuffie, leaving Barret and Red to ponder her last statement.

* * *

_Fixed again! re-edit '09_


	2. View from the top

_---Hey, it's me again. I decided to just post the first two and see what happens. I'm not so great with getting this to do what I want, sorry if it seems kinda chopy. I'll get the hang of posting...I hope. prays ; Anywho...still don't own 'em. Wish I did._

'_Useless? Me? Gods, what a jerk!' _Yuffie wandered threw the endless rows of slot machines and people. She found her way to the battle arena. _'Maybe a good fight would clear my mind.'_ Strangely she had no desire to steal anything or even to go back to find Cloud or Tifa. _'I can't believe bird brain stood up for me. No one ever does that.'_ She headed for the sign up booth. _'Maybe I should stop callin' him bird brain.' _She started to write her name down. _'Maybe I should leave. They don't need me around.' _She paid a small fee for her costume. It was a simple black skirt with shorts sewn in, a form fitting black top with mesh arms, and black fingerless gloves and a black ribbon that covered just her eyes, as if that would somehow make her unrecognizable. She looked every bit the deadly assassin her ninja hero's were. _'I am a ninja. I am deadly, and stealthy. I am all the things that a ninja should be. Why would they ever think I wasn't? Is it because I talk too much? Or maybe 'cause I stole their materia.' _She began stretching. _'It's better than killing people outright for my cause.' _ She reasoned that saving Wutai was more important than a few stupid rules…like stealing, lying...you know, those ones.

_I've hardly spent any real amount of time with that many people I wasn't trying to steal from. Naturally I'd be curious. Maybe I should really move on…' _Sitting in the locker room waiting to be called she began considering other ways to spend her time.

"That cloak gives you away every time." She didn't even open her eyes to look at the intruder. "And the goofy boots, gold claw, and big ass gun." She finally opened her eyes. Vincent was smiling at her. Not a huge grin, but a small curve just at the corners of his mouth. Her stormy grey eyes gave him a casual once over.

"I like the cloak." he glanced down at the claw and boots. "What are you doing?" he motioned to the outfit. His crimson eyes were shimmering with the barest hints of amusement.

"Sale at the Ninja surplus." She deadpanned. There was another hint of a smile. She closed her eyes again and leaned back on the lockers. Suddenly a thought struck her. "What in Leviathan's name are you doing in the girl's locker room?" she laughed at this, Vincent gave a low chuckle.

"Thought that would be obvious." He turned to look down the empty aisle. Yuffie was openly staring at him. "I came to look for you."

** "Round 17! Round 17! Will the Black Rose please come to the arena?"** A voice echoed quite loudly over the intercom. Yuffie jumped up.

"That's me!" She vigorously rubbed her hands together and collected her oversized shuriken.

"I thought you were the 'White Rose'?" Vincent raised a questioning eye brow.

"Things change…" her voice was low and the look in her eyes spoke volumes even if she chose not to. "White's a stupid color anyways." Sticking her nose in the air she jogged out to the arena. Vincent watched her as she made her way up to sign in for her round. The way she seemed to glide across the ground, how every muscle moved flawlessly under her skin. _'Not now. She's a child.' _He scolded his wayward thoughts. He couldn't deny that she certainly had an exotic beauty. It was strange to suddenly see her like this. _'Have I been blind this whole time? She is just a child. I'm old enough to be her father, older maybe.' _He looked away suddenly ashamed. Thinking of her, a young innocent…_well, nearly..._ young girl at any rate. He flipped open his phone and called Cloud.

"Yes. Well you could just look to the arena." His voice was flat and almost utterly emotionless. _'Like a robot.' _he thought idly. _'I sound like a robot.'_ Yuffie had actually been the one to say he sounded like a bucket of 'empty hateful bolts.' She'd get so worked up over him being so cold all the time. Yet another one of those ridiculous, ghostly smiles. Since when did _he_ smile? _'Ninja indeed.'_

** "Round 17! The Golden Knight versus the beautiful, Black Rose!"** The announcer paraded around the arena in a silly chocobo costume complete with gold feathers on her backside and a head band with bouncy golden stars and feathers. The fighters took to their respective corners. Smiling at her opponent just before the fight started. They shook hands and waited for the bell. The guy, the Golden Knight, was using a set of twin swords. They resembled a shorter version of the elegant blades traditionally made in Wutai. He was, as the name would imply, covered in a golden disaster of an outfit. _'It's not the clothes that make the man…or warrior. I shouldn't underestimate him just because he looks like a gold genie. Actually his costume is really…nice.' _She smiled a second time. He was wearing a shiny golden vest that had three buttons attached in the front and a pair of golden, loose fitting pants that had been tied with a shiny black sash and…you guessed it, gold shoes. They looked like slippers the way they curved up at the toe. _'Just like a genie.'_ She couldn't help it and giggled.

** "Fighters ready?" **the announcer made her way from the center of the arena to the table behind it. She reached up with a delicate little mallet and beat the paint off the poor little bell while yelling for them to begin at the same time.

Yuffie was off in a flash, practically disappearing for a moment. In an instant she had landed three hits sending the golden boy clear across the arena to the corner she had started from. He jumped up bring both blades up in defense when her over-sized weapon came flying at him, successfully sending it back to her. She caught it with expert hands and had sent it off again almost before it touched her fingers. She went to one side while it made its way around the arena in the other direction. The knight deflected it once more. However, in doing so he left himself completely open to her attack. She was fast, faster than fast. She was like a phantom. She landed two punches and a firm round house kick that sent him flying forward, face first into the mat. She was in the air right behind him. She used a move she learned from Tifa, driving him into the ground with a firm kick before he actually hit the ground, jumping away as soon as the fierce blow connected; catching the shuriken as it flew passed her. He looked up and all she saw was that crude pilots face. _'I'll crush you…'_ she thought, her eyes becoming dark and angry. She launched herself at the man with a renewed sense of anger; he was up deflecting each strike from her shuriken with a blow from one or both of the swords. He wasn't all that much slower than her. His blade flew right by her right cheek. She dodged each blow, never once stopping in her own attacks. She was incredibly agile and proficient with the shuriken. The genie like man couldn't land a single blow or even come close to knock her back.

"What is she doing!" Cloud jogged up Vincent, who stood in the doorway to the locker room Yuffie had changed outfits in.

"…"Vincent just looked from Cloud to the arena once more. "She isn't herself out there." Vincent watched, completely caught up in the fight. Yuffie was making a fool of the man she fought. It was clear he was no match for her and her ninja techniques. Cloud watched his jaw dropping slightly as he saw Yuffie moving faster than he'd ever seen anyone move.

"So where was this when we fought Sephiroth?" Cloud joked, although he was slightly in awe of the small girl's true power.

"She is amazing! She flies like the wind." Tifa shouted in excitement. "I never knew she could fight like that." She watched in open admiration.

"I've only seen her this way two other times. Both times she left broken bones and debris in her wake." Vincent spoke up. "She's clearly upset."

"But look at that grin. She's gotta be lovin' this." Tifa argued.

"I have a feeling that if that were Cid's face she'd love it a whole lot more." Cloud's eyes narrowed on the little ninja. The fight was coming to a close. The announcer bounced her way up to the stage, with the same unabated enthusiasm, proclaiming Yuffie the champ and advancing her to the next round.

"Did you see that shit! She wailed on that poor bastard." Red rolled his eyes at Barret's 'colorful' description of the fight.

"I'm going to go talk to her." Cloud started for the waiting area. Vincent stopped him with his gold claw.

"Now is a good time to let her cool off. Just let her fight it out, no good can come from you dragging her back to where ever Cid may be. He's likely too inebriated to listen to reason right now."

"Not that he would sober, either. But Vincent's right, Cloud. Just let her do this." Tifa came to stand by his side. "Take me out! Yuffie will be fine, Vincent would know if we needed to intervene." She grabbed his arm and started to walk away with him.

"Alright, but please keep an eye on her. I don't want her doing something stupid." He glanced back at the arena.

"She aint no little girl anymore, Spike. She'll be fine. Go take yer woman out to a show or somethin'!" Barret gave a good natured laugh as he ushered the two away. "You got this?" Barret nodded towards the arena.

"…"was Vincent's witty reply accompanied by an annoyed glance.

"Right, c'mon Red lets go waist some gil!" Barret clapped the beast on the back.

"Right…" He followed the bigger man away towards the throngs of ridiculously wealthy people, throwing a last nod at Vincent. "If you need us, _please_ call." Red gave extra emphasis on the please. Vincent gave a small nod and a chuckle. _'So that's what taking one for the team means.'_

**_Sometime later..._**

"I've never seen Yuffie like that." Cloud absently stirred his drink. "She seems…well," he didn't finish.

"Angry. Hurt. How would you feel if every time you turn around someone is throwing insults your way? How often do we actually treat her like an adult? She's nineteen now! She's not a little girl." Tifa stared out into night sky. Stars weren't visible with all the light from the saucer, just empty blackness. "Nineteen. Wow, where does the time go, huh?" She turned to face Cloud. He had a strange look on his face. "What?" She smiled warmly at him.

"You haven't changed a bit." He reached across the table and took her hand. "I'll try treating her more like an adult, promise." He gave her hand a squeeze. Tifa laughed lightly and twisted her hand so she could lace her fingers with his. He had that look again.

"What is _that_ look for?" she laughed.

"Let's get outta here." He grinned, standing up, urging her to follow suit.

"Nice!" Yuffie took her winnings from the fight, ducking out of the next round. Golden boy shook her hand thanking her for letting him advance in her stead. "How do ya like that? Twenty six hundred gil for a fifteen minute fight." She didn't even turn to look at Vincent. She could just feel when he was close now. Weird, he was the sneakiest man alive and she knew she was the only person that he couldn't hide from. Well maybe. Could be that he doesn't try to hide from her. Probably the later, she was pretty sure Vincent could be a ghost if he wanted to.

"Not bad." He spoke quietly. He always spoke with that quiet, gruff tone. Yuffie had learned to like it since there was no option B. She had tried to get him to say anything in any other tone to no avail.

"What shall we spend it on? Want to bet on races? Get drunk? Probably not drinking, I don't think I could handle you any more depressing than you already are. How about food? Do you eat food? Yeah, right? I mean you're not really a vampire, that's just dumb…, no, not food. How about-"

"Shut up…" He walked ahead of her. "Follow me." _'He always had such a way with words...'_ Yuffie smiled as she followed him.

"Where are we going? You gonna mug me for my precious gil?" She feigned concern. He merely rolled his eyes.

"I have more than enough of my own gil. I wouldn't need or want yours."

"Touchy touchy, sheesh. It's a joke, Vinnie. You know… funny ha ha." She caught up to him. "We could get you a new cape!" He glared at her now.

"Why waist the gil when there is nothing wrong with this one?" He went back to staring ahead as they made their way threw the maze of people and glittering slot machines and televisions. "Really, that gil just burns a whole right threw your pocket. You should learn to save some." _'Good god. I sound like an old man.' _ "Stop talking…" He said as she opened her mouth to speak, which in turn earned him a rather nasty look.

"What's wrong with you? You never talk like this. The funniest thing I've heard you say to date, and I quote. 'Dotdotdot' end quote." She made the motions with her fingers. "What happened to gloomy 'I've got demons in _my_ closet,' Vince?" He stopped suddenly causing her to both stop talking and plow right into him. "A warning would have been nice." She mumbled rubbing her nose. Glancing back at her with a guarded look.

"I was trying to be polite." He started walking again. "Here, I wanted to show you this." It was a large theatre. The lights dimmed, signifying the start of some sort of show. Yuffie walked up a little in front of Vincent to get a clearer view.

"What is this?" she whispered as they were engulfed in total blackness.

"Wait for it, you're bound to…enjoy it." Vincent leaned back against the wall. The ceiling exploded with lights as if they were racing through space. Yuffie couldn't help herself and walked closer. A beautiful female voice began a long, detailed story relating to the first ball of materia to be discovered. She talked about there uses, colors, how they were created, and even showed demonstrations. Yuffie was in heaven. She turned once to Vincent. His face seemed soft, not smiling, but not frowning either. She mouthed a thank you to him and went back to listening the beautiful voice recount every single piece of materia. _'Perfect,'_ she sighed contentedly. _'Absolutely perfect.'_

_---Please review . anything is welcome. Thanks! wave bye!__  
_


	3. Awakening

---_Yay! You like it! Well here's chapter 3, sorry they are so long... I haven't finished DoC so I'll just say it takes place after. I only know how the game ends and a few of the characters...I'm terrible, sorry. So, without further ado, here's the story. Standard disclaimers apply. Cid will be in the next one, when I get to write about the really fun stuff!  
_

"Wow…that was amazing, Vincent." Yuffie almost whispered as the show came to an end. "How'd you find out about that?" She was fidgeting with her mask from her costume. They were on their way back to the rest of the group. Tifa and Cloud were almost finished with a play, Barret and Red had made a killing betting on chocobos, and Cid was still drinking.

"It was advertised on the way here. You were busy destroying Cid's boots, so it's no wonder you didn't know." Yuffie glared at him, she knew he was smiling under that stupid cloak.

"Jerk…"she mumbled. "Do we have to…go back? I mean now? Can't we go ride that tram, or watch a race or a fight? Anything…" She trailed off as Vincent slowly turned toward her. "Please?" She whispered, not looking up to meet his gaze. She figured he would say no, he wouldn't want to be her chaperone. She looked everywhere but at him. He was quietly staring at her with a soft, contemplative expression. "I mean if you'd rather just go back and get this over wi-"

"Won't you get nauseous riding in that tram?" Her face shot up. With a big grin and a wink she shook her head vigorously.

"I'll be fine!" She jumped up and down with excitement. So they went off toward the ride. Yuffie bounced around Vincent with barely contained excitement. She was humming to the song that filtered through the speakers. She glanced back toward Vincent and smiled. He was glad his hair and cloak hid most of his face, made watching her less conspicuous. _'She really is…different.'_ He shook his head as he followed her. He looked up and was hit full force by a smile he'd only seen once before. He fought hard to keep himself upright. _'Keep your head straight, old man. I can't believe I'm being distracted so easily…' _He knew it had something to do with the amount of time they spent together. After everything they'd been through together, they ought to be pretty close. Yuffie turned and walked backwards briefly to stare at him with a thoughtful little pout. She paused just long enough to close the distance between them and reached for his gauntlet covered arm. With out thinking he obliged. She gently urged him to catch up and walk with her.

"What's wrong with _you_?" Vincent repeated her earlier statement. "This is the longest I have ever had the pleasure of your silence." He gave her a small grin. She huffed and playfully punched his shoulder, thus releasing his hand. He quickly regretted talking and losing contact but made no motion to recapture the ninja's hand.

"I was being _polite_." She laughed with a quirked eye brow and a mischievous grin. _'I can't believe we were holding hands? I'm thrilled to be spending any time at all with you…oh by the way, I kinda really like you. What the hell am I supposed to say!' _She shook her head in an effort to slow down her racing thoughts. "This is…great." With that she ran the rest of the fifteen feet to the awaiting ride. She paid and patiently waited for Vincent to drag himself up to the little car and sit down opposite her. _'Yes it is…' _he smiled inwardly. He'd been doing that a lot lately, smiling that is. _'Damn ninja.' _He laughed to himself softly.

"What's so funny?" She asked staring out the window.

"You." He said simply, sitting across from her and watching the scenery slowly float by.

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

"You think ol' Vinnie got himself ninja'd?" Barret gave a gruff laugh at the thought of Vincent being captured, tied up and, held hostage by non other than the clumsiest ninja in all ninja history. He could almost see Yuffie's beady little eyes, smiling as she stole all of poor Vincent's materia and gil.

"I seriously doubt that." Red said flatly, failing to see the humor in Yuffie attacking the man outright. "They're probably eating or talking. It's been at least a month since they've seen one another, after all." Red's tail flickered back and forth as he spoke. His voice soft, as if he was reliving the memory all over again.

It had actually been the girl, Shelke, who found him. She had suggested the cave where _'Miss Lucrecita' _lived. Everyone agreed and sent her up there to find him. Yuffie had said it'd be better for Shelke to go since she and Vincent had a connection of sorts. Shelke had been a little against it. She thought it should be Vincent's only confidant, Yuffie. Yuffie being stubborn, as always, won and sent Shelke on a little hike. She even let Shelke borrow her chocobo. Red smiled, Yuffie could be very giving and kind if given a real chance. She used to sit around with Red back during the whole Sephiroth campaign and talk to him. They'd talk about Wutai, past, present and future battles…not just the ones with monsters and the Shin Ra soldiers. She often talked about her fears and doubts to him. She always called him Nanaki, only using Red when she desperately needed him or was incredibly angry at Cid. She wasn't always the spoiled, thieving, selfish little brat everyone else saw. It was almost like she was faking it, keeping people away accidentally on purpose. _'Whatever that means.' _He shook his head to clear the memory.

"Where are Cloud and Tifa?" Red glanced up at Barret. "Weren't they supposed to be here?"

"I dunno? They say they'll be here, they'll be here. C'mon! Another race is starting. I bet we'll make a shi-"Barret droned on in various tones of excitement about the upcoming race. Red, however, sat statue still hoping like hell there was an escape hatch somewhere close by. If he could just get away from the obnoxious man he could enjoy himself. Sighing in defeat he lay down at the mans feet and wondered what Vincent and Yuffie were up to. "Wooo! Run bird! COOOME OOONN!" Barret slammed his fist down on the table and jumped up and down twice.

_'Gods, somebody better show up or I'm going to-'his_ thought was interrupted by a pair of stormy grey eyes.

"What in the world are you doing under the table?" Yuffie peered down at him. "You hungry, cause I haven't eaten yet. I'm starving!" She gave her stomach a firm pat, to which it growled. "See?" she giggled and spun around, preparing to find a booth to get some food. "When do we check into our rooms? I'm getting tired…wonder if we'll get a suite like last time! That'd be so freaking cool!" Yuffie rambled on, Red close behind.

"What would?" Tifa threw an arm around the smaller woman's shoulders.

"A suite! It'd be very awsome." Yuffie gave a matter-o-fact nod.

"I think we did actually." Tifa paused to think then nodded, "has to be, Cloud spent quite a bit on them. Hey! Nice fight earlier. Nice to see someone likes my _style_." Tifa made quote marks as she referred to the kick Yuffie had used in the mini fight.

"And who says _you_ have style?" Red joked. The girls laughed with Red and continued their conversation, heading into the actual food court.

"Glad to see you didn't get nothin' stolen, hangin' round that little pest." Barret glanced to Vincent with a cocky grin. The look Vincent gave caused Barret to become a little uneasy. He looked away and cleared his throat.

"She is not a pest…" He all but growled out.

"It was a joke, man. Shit. You need to lighten up. And she is too; she bugs me all the damn time to bring Marlene to Wutai, or for me to let her come stay there…or for anything. Girl's a pain in my ass…but we all love her for it." Barret practically whispered the last part, like it was a secret. Vincent clearly had no interest in holding a conversation with the man, and decided he'd go out for some fresh air. The feeling of Yuffie's hand burned into his metal claw. _'Pathetic…that's what I've become. I'm a downtrodden, miserable, and downright gloomy individual who has budding feelings for a girl one third his age. Terrific!' _He sauntered out of the building. He had a strange feeling as he meandered through the gates leading down to the train back to Correl. Like someone was watching him…but not from anywhere he could see.

**_'Vincent…'_**the voice sounded like silver bells. It couldn't be! No, she only talks to Cloud, and on occasion Tifa when she's in the church…_her_ church. **_'Vincent…'_** Maybe it was his minds way of dealing with the loss of Chaos. He'd been _feeling_ things more lately. It was indescribable. He felt loss and joy at the same time, all the time. He both loved and hated it. _'I don't want to be crazy…'_ He caught himself looking around for the voice, earning him a few curious stares from passers by.

**_'Vincent!'_** This time there was a flash and he was thrust into a field. He knew these flowers well. They belonged to _her, _Aeris.

"What the hell…" He breathed looking around quickly. He felt a presence behind him, but made no effort to turn and face her. "Aeris…" He sighed hearing her voice as she giggled, wrapped her arms around him from where she stood.

_'It has been a long time, Vincent.'_ Her voice was like seven notes of music.

"Indeed." He wasn't sure what to say, or if he was even supposed to talk. Cloud had said that it was always just for a moment, just to set him on the right path, when he saw her.

_'I need…we…need your help.' _She spoke with a silky softness that somehow put his racing thoughts to rest, making him almost comfortable in the field. _'I'm sorry…but I have to ask you to do something. You have to be brave now, Vincent.' _He realized suddenly she hadn't ever even opened her mouth. She was in his mind. Something horrifying was there now. A dark presence he knew all too well._ 'It will be ok. You'll see, I promise.' _Her voice echoed through the field.

**_'VINCENT!'_** his mind went blank as his eyes began to glow with that eerie yellow glow, once again. All he could think of was Aeris, the little flower girl, had forced Chaos back into him. _'Oh Gods…not again.' _Then there was only blackness.

_---So, I didn't realize just how difficult it can be to write these. I had a hard time getting the end to pick up but hopefully the next chapter will be a little more exciting, Thanks for reading! Comments of any kind are welcome. _


	4. Strength in weakness

_---Hey, it's me again. Another chapter, this one is longish and a little sad-ish. I sort of accidentally let 'Mr. Doom and Gloom' go a little ooc so sorry, but it seemed to fit with everything else. I didn't mean for this to go all downer on me...but alas, there it is. So...read on, enjoy and no...I do not own any of them. I want to, but square got there first._

It had been a strange day, long and irritating, but still somehow great. Cid had finally found Yuffie much later that night. He'd also seen her fight with 'Goldie', as he preferred to call him, and had been thoroughly impressed.

Yuffie stood alone on one of the many outdoor terraces in the Golden Saucer. She was listening to the music filtering up from the galleria down below. She could actually smell Cid's approach. He reeked to high heaven of beer, whiskey and, a whole pack of cigarettes. She expected him to just ignore her and head to his room.

"Thought I'd find ya here." He walked out to stand near her, toying with an unlit cigarette. "You've been keepin' to yer self a bit more lately. Somethin' eating at ya?" He tried to get her to talk, yell, or acknowledge him in some small way. She turned her stony gaze on him.

"I felt like it might be better if I waited out here till you had made your way to your own quarters for the evening. Heaven forbid I get in the way or ruin your vacation any further than I already have." She stared back out into nothing waiting for Vincent to come back. She'd been uneasy about him going out alone; afraid he'd leave or get hurt. She hadn't been paying much, if any, attention to Cid. He shifted uneasily from foot to foot. _'Here it comes, another argument. Gods, does he ever just give the hell-' _

"You are an amazing ninja. Yer mother'd be real proud." He looked away, ready to leave. "I should never have said you were useless. Ya really are key to our sanity. You keep us level…yer like…my compass."

"That has to be the cheesiest shit I've ever heard…" Yuffie caught him full force with an enchanting smile. "Compass…? Come on, I know you're all into flying, but you couldn't have come up with something more romantic? Like, 'You're the wind in my sails' or 'I'd be incomplete without you!" She dramatically threw a hand over her eyes and gestured wildly to the obscured stars with the other.

"Shit, Sherra'd have my ass if I talked to a youngin' like you that way…or anyone for that matter." He gave a good natured laugh. He still wouldn't meet her eyes. She walked closer and carefully reached up, plucking the cigarette from his lips.

"This crap will kill you before Sherra or I get the chance. Quit." She started to walk away and suddenly turned and ran to the older pilot. He turned just in time to brace himself. She flung her arms around his neck and did the first thing that came to mind. She cried, sobbing uncontrollably into his shirt. He hugged her fiercely. _'Poor kid...'_ Cid closed his eyes tight, wondering if he had done this to her. _'Why you always gotta be so hard on her? Asshole…'_

"It's fine, really. I know I bother you most of the time…"Yuffie whispered from his chest. He looked at her with a very puzzled expression.

"You read minds?!" He forced her to arms length and stared at her like she really did grow a second head.

"No…you said that last part out loud, old man." She pulled back carefully, wiping her eyes with the back of her gloved hand. Her eyes held a look of almost pure desolation. A look even Vincent would've cringed to see. "Sorry, I don't know what possessed me to do that." She stared at his boots. They were freshly cleaned and polished. "Nice boots."

"No hurlin' on these ones, just waxed 'em." He gave her a big grin. He'd ask her about the outburst later. For now, "Come on upstairs and ruin the rest of my vacation with everyone else."

* * *

**_'Vincent! Wake up…' _**This is starting to get a little ridiculous. First, Yuffie going all murderous assassin on Goldie, then that little flower girl, and now…Chaos. 

"You are not supposed to be here." He said flatly to the presence filling every crevice and sanctuary in his mind. He could almost feel his heart freezing over as the demons emotions took over him once more. _'Yuffie is going to kill me.' _He thought with a wry smile.

**_'If you live that long.'_** The demon replied to the thought.

"I forgot you could hear all that." Vincent noted a bit offhandedly. "What are you here for?" He demanded angrily of the demon.

**_'You'll know soon enough. Stop talking to me, you're making the mortals uneasy.' _**Sure enough, people were back to the 'chocobo caught in a light spell' look and quickly running away. _'You son of a bitch…get out of my head!' _Vincent took on the trade mark "brood-and-glare-stare" as he headed back to the Saucer. He needed to find Cloud. Maybe he's heard from _her_.

* * *

_'He's back? Again…but that's so unfair!' _Yuffie tossed restlessly in an effort to sleep on the futon. Vincent had come back with that same haunted look burning in his eyes. _'Stupid demon…' _ The living room was more comfortable than a room with Tifa mooning over Cloud again. _'Just when I thought he'd be okay. What do I do?' _she had her arm covering her eyes. 

"Ask for help, brat." Cid called from the kitchen of the suite. She raised an eye brow, an expression she knew he could sense as he next commented, "ya talk in your sleep." She smiled in response.

"Ha, done in by a sleep deprivation. I thought it'd take longer for me to go crazy." She sat up and threw the blankets off of her and made her way to the kitchen area. Cid was having a cup of tea while staring at his still full pack of smokes. "You really haven't smoked since earlier on the balcony?" She stared hopefully.

"Yeah, I should quit anyhow, can't be much of a father from up there." Cid gestured to the sky. Yuffie stared at him for a moment, trying to register the implications of the last statement.

"You mean…you are…a dad?" She inched closer to him slowly, as if any sudden movement would cause him to go back to cursing and threatening her with his Venus Gospel. Something she really didn't enjoy.

"Well, I will be in another few months." He turned his gaze to Yuffie. He may be just a bit older than her, but he still could take her breath away with that gentle, heart breaking warm smile. She could easily see how he won Sherra over, now. He seemed to practically glow at the thought of being a father.

"That's…wonderful! That's better than wonderful, Cid! Why didn't you tell us before?" She hugged him for the second time that day.

"It didn't seem like the right time. Everyone was a little upset with me at the time…" he trailed off. Suddenly he turned to her, grabbing her chin so she'd face him. "What's wrong?" He couldn't think of what else to say. He went with straight to the point, he was good at that.

"Wh-what do you mean? I'm fine." She didn't smile or giggle or even try to get free. She just stared at him. "Momentary lapse in emotional control. That's all, swear!" She half laughed and rubbed the back of her head. "…really, I'm fine." She whispered, only causing Cid to stare harder and making him doubt her even more.

"You've never cried once, not in the entire time I've known you…which has been quite a while in case you forgot, not when Aeris passed, not when Cloud or Tifa were nearly killed in the life stream…and not even when we thought Vincent had been destroyed. Not a single tear, then you break down on me on the balcony after I had yelled at you, something you've _always_ handled well. So, excuse me if I don't quite believe everything is all sunshine and kisses in Yuffie-land!" He growled out at her. She stared at the floor. That empty look was threatening to steal her away again. She didn't know what to do. This wasn't a situation she knew how to handle.

"Cid…I, uh. I can't…I mean…"sighing she tried to pull the words out of thin air. "Just…don't say anything. Not right now, ok?" She gave him a serious look, not continuing until he nodded. She hopped up onto the counter; he was standing in front of her. "Lord Godo…I mean, my father…he's dying." Cid's face drained completely of all color pigment completely. He looked exactly like a ghost. "I'm going to have to return to Wutai soon, I will be forced to take my place as the ruler of…I'll be the Empress of Wutai." She looked so far beyond her age in that moment. "I will be leader to a dying nation. My people will have nothing once He's gone." Cid stood for a second not knowing exactly what to say, his heart broke for the woman before him. "What's the point of doing this if it's not even going to save them? What good is it? Why does he have to go now? I'm not ready for this!" It had never occurred to him, or anyone as far as he knew, that she'd ever be forced to really own up to her title. "I'm not ready to lose my dad…" A tear slid down her cheek. He quickly reached up and caught it with his thumb, holding her face gently. "…Cid…"She couldn't hold back the torrent any longer and he hugged her for the second time in the last day. With each sob that racked her small frame, it felt like he was breaking apart. His chest constricted and he let out a ragged breath.

"Yuffie…" he whispered into her hair. "God, I'm so sorry, dear. I'm so, so sorry…"his whisper was soft, like a friend. He looked up, caught in a crimson stare. Vincent, like always, just appeared out of thin air. Cid could make out a look of concern and sorrow just before it disappeared behind his emotionless stare. Yuffie sobbed and even Cid could see the cold shell of Vincent's usual stoic shell crack. Cid gently tugged at Yuffie's chin, her eyes clamped shut. He kissed the top of her head and stepped aside to let Vincent take her. With little effort, Vincent swept her off the counter and silently walked to his room, sending Cid a silent nod of thanks. He held her close, till he could feel her heart beat in his chest. She cried until she fell asleep. He situated her so she was curled up facing him on the bed. Gently he ran his gauntlet covered hand run through her hair and down the side of her face.

"…Vincent." She whispered breathlessly in her sleep.

"I'm here…"He cringed at how empty he sounded.

"Don't leave me…again…"she trailed off, giving into sleep.

_**'I can't believe it...you have **_**feelings_ for this _weak_ child_** The creature inside him growled, gnawing at every corner of his mind. The feeling was beyond explanation. It was the slow destruction of his soul. _**'Small and weak. You are pathetic, I would very much like to kill you myself, disgusting human.'**_ It was a fear unlike any other. Vincent had no doubt the demon would if it ever had the smallest chance. In another time, he would have welcomed the threat with open arms...now he had to be strong.

_'Yes...be strong, Vincent. Please, only for a little longer...'_ Those silver bells that could only belong to the little flower girl. He would try. He knew what it meant to hope again...but _It_ took so much from him. Emotions would soon be unrecognizable, and then it would happen again. _'Lucretcia...'_ He held onto that memory, tossing it like a bone to a hungry dog, something to distract the demon.

---_so...yeah, long...but I'm really liking this, but I don't like sad stuff...but I like drama...but I don't wanna kill people!!! Up next...why that flower girl shoves demons on people who would really rather not have demons shoved in places demons don't belong. Comment, critisisms, and ideas all welcome. I'd also like to thank everyone who reviewed. I'm glad you like it!  
_


	5. Burden

_AN: Ok, so the chapters are definitely longer in word than they appear on here. Ha ha…so I hope this one is good and long and has more than sad people in it. I was thinking I need to change the rating, too…but I'm not sure yet…hmm…_

_---If I owned them I probably wouldn't have to write this…but I don't, which is really just too bad…but I digress, here's more story!_

_'Hey…what's so funny?' Her voice sent chills down his spine._

_'You…' hadn't he had this conversation before? He didn't have time to react as she moved suddenly to sit next to him. There was a sort of sadness behind her smile. He reached out and touched her cheek, gently running his thumb in a slow circle as he held her. She closed her eyes, leaning into the touch. _

_'Nothing is ever that simple, is it?' She asked, not opening her eyes still. Holding his hand against her face, memorizing the way it felt. _

_'What do you mean?' He carefully withdrew his gloved hand. As much as he tried, contact still made him uneasy. _

_'Something terrible is going to happen, I can't stop it and yet I feel like I should be able to…but...' her voice trailed off as she looked up at him. 'I can't do this. I can't be what they think I'm supposed to be.' _

_'Aren't you the 'Great Yuffie Kisaragi,' Ninja Extraordinaire? What is there you _can't_ do?' He smiled slightly. Something was indeed wrong, he could feel it. _

_'…Empress.' She spat out, as if the words were poison. She was silent for a long while. He sat trying to think of a way to comfort her. This was far outside his realm of expertise. Hurting people? Now that was something he was good at._

_Suddenly he wasn't with her, he was outside. Aeris came to him._

_'Please, help us. We need your strength.' Her voice…it sounded sweet and kind, and yet here she was handing him back to the demon. Did she even realize what she was asking of him?_

_A simple nod. He was emotionless, empty…he felt, for the briefest moment that he hated her. He took the light she held out for him._

_'It will be ok. You'll see, I promise.' A promise he doubted she could keep…and yet, he had to trust her. She had helped save them twice before. Clearly she wouldn't do this for spite. _

_Even as he agreed, he couldn't help but panicking briefly. The last thought he'd had was of Yuffie, her body was broken, covered in blood and, her eyes were empty. He reached for her…but **He** was there, dragging him down into darkness. He tried to call out to her but could make no sound. _

_**'…I will crush them all…Set me free.'** The creature hissed furiously. He couldn't move or react as blackness engulfed him completely. He watched as he was slowly pulled into utter darkness, still trying to call out to her._

"Vincent…" It was her voice…soft and inviting. "…Vincent…"She was running her fingers through his hair, trying to wake him. The image of her body, bloody, and beaten flashed before him again.His eyes shot open.

"YUFFIE!" He shot up, breathing hard, grabbing her hand and suddenly pulling her close, still caught in the dream.

"VINCENT!" She was…laughing? "Hey, we aren't gonna 'John and Marsha' this are we?" She looked down at him from her perch on his _lap?!_ He realized a bit late that his metal arm was firmly wrapped around her small waist thus holding her scantily clad body directly onto his lap. He tried to pull himself back to reality. _'John?' _

"Who's John?" He stared at her with a look that sent her into peels of laughter. She struggled for breath with each giggle that tore threw her, her hands resting on his chest. He was becoming all too aware of their awkward seating arrangement.

"You…Should…see…your face!" She laughed harder then. His face twisted into an even more befuddled stare. "You kept mumbling my name every time I said yours." She kept on laughing as his face changed from one confused expression to another. "I…never mind, it's just a joke." He wasn't hearing her at all. _'She's on my lap?'_

_**'You'd think you've never touched a woman before…company.'**_ Before Vincent had time to react the door quite literally exploded. Reflexively, he pulled her closer with his good hand, grabbing for his weapon with the other.

"Yuffie! Is everything al-"Cloud came crashing threw the broken door, mostly thanks to Barret ripping it out of the wall. Cloud stopped dead in his tracks, hardly remembering to breathe even as Barret, Tifa, Red, and an irate looking Cid barreled in after him. Yuffie sat, pressed fully into his chest, straddling him, her knees locked behind him. It was quite a site. Everyone was trying their best not to look directly at them. Cloud opened his mouth to speak and closed it again, doing a pretty good impression of a fish. "Uh…should we come back…when you aren't…uh, _busy_?" he gestured awkwardly with his hands, averting his eyes. He hardly had time to duck as a small nightstand, the lamp that was on said nightstand, and a bible that had, until recently, been inside the nightstand came hurtling at him. Vincent shook his head at his perplexing situation, looking up in time to see the beet red ninja throwing furniture at a now laughing Cloud. The dream forgotten for now, he couldn't help himself and smiled. **_'You find this amusing?!' _**Vincent merely sighed inwardly. '_I'm surprised_ you_ don't.' _When he got no response he forced himself to move. With a 'hrmph' Vincent pulled himself off the bed and stood behind Yuffie.

"You stupid spiky haired jerk! Knock often?!" She gestured angrily at the splintered door Barret still held a piece of, looking a little embarrassed. She huffed, grabbing for more furniture. A strong hand caused her to stop. She threw a confused glance at him.

"I think we need to talk." Vincent once again, was successfully a kill joy. All the humor was sucked out of the room.

"I know…"Cloud spoke softly, brushing debris and glass from his clothes. Yuffie stood still. She twisted her hands in the small camisole she wore, staring down at her black silk shorts she'd slept in. _'Leviathan, help us.'_ She sighed, still smiling slightly.

* * *

"So, is it Chaos we're trying to catch?" Tifa sat with her fourth cup of coffee and seriously frazzled nerves, trying to figure out who was killing who, with what, why and, where. It was like that stupid game Marlene always wanted to play. "This is Clue…only with us, no dead body-" 

"Yet." Cid interjected.

"-a demon, a ghost, and plenty of espionage, lies and, confusion." Tifa gave a nod of thanks to Cid.

"What's Clue?" Barret glanced around.

"Something you don't have." Yuffie shot back, over her shoulder.

"Board game…" Tifa answered with no small amount of irritation.

"Is there a point to this?" Cid leaned back, willing the toothpick in his mouth to turn into a cigarette.

"Just listen…"Red growled from his seat next to Yuffie.

"Wait, start over…from the part where _Aeris_,of all people, forced you to take Chaos back." Tifa leaned closer to Vincent. She still found it incredibly hard to believe that the Ancient would make him suffer for no reason.

"Wasn't exactly by force, and, no it's not him we're trying to get, I've got him already." Vincent pointed to his chest. "He has no intention of breaking free. He's here for another reason…" Vincent trailed off and directed a pointed, brood filled stare to Yuffie.

"What?! I haven't touched, stolen from, or poisoned anyone…don't give me that look, broodster." Yuffie made a valiant effort to feign ignorance. Everyone was staring at her in almost the exact same way. "What, did you guys rehearse this? You're creepin' me out." She shifted in her seat.

"You have ta tell 'em what the hell is goin' on, kid. Maybe it's related." Cid, in a surprisingly uncharacteristic manner, put an arm around Yuffie. The others watched and waited for a fist, a shuriken, an epic battle, or screaming to ensue, Yuffie just sat for a moment. With a deep breath she agreed to talk.

"Ok…here it goes." She whispered. "My dad's real sick, and I will have to be appointed Empress of Wutai." She took a deep breath and with a gentle squeeze from Cid and a subtle nudge from Red she continued. "I really don't see how this is related to Aeris and Chaos though. All it means is I have control of Wutai, Vincent is possessed…_again_. And Cloud's gonna start spouting really motivating and inspirational monologues. It doesn't match up." Cloud frowned.

"I do not 'spout'." He glared at her. "C'mon, there has to be something we aren't seeing here!" He quickly got the topic back on track. "Is there anything special that'll happen when you take over?"

"Dancing and fancy robes." She said flatly.

"No…" He looked up at her. "Special 'weapons', freaky alien mothers, rogue assassins, or a giant asteroid that's hell bent on stopping you?"

"Ha, not as far as I know, but knowing our luck that'll change. So far, it's just old age and my father to contend with." She smiled at his attempt at lightening the mood. _'Good ol' bird brain.'_ She really did love him sometimes.

"Maybe it's something that won't happen till she actually _is_ Empress?" Barret spoke up. "You know, like an assassination or somethin'. Aint like she's the most liked kid out there…"he trailed off, realizing how wrong what he said just sounded. "Uh, well…shit. I just meant it might be unclear."

"Somebody get him a gold star…Way to state the obvious!" Yuffie was glaring daggers at him now. "…most liked…jerk…" She mumbled angrily to herself.

"So…right now we know what? Vincent has Chaos, Yuffie's going to become Empress" Cid groaned, which earned him a rather strong punch from Yuffie and a corresponding glare from Tifa as she continued as if nothing had happened. "…and something really bad is going to happen then?"

Cid, Red, and Cloud exchanged glances with one another, nodded as if they had come up with an answer to all her prayers, then looked back to Tifa.

"Yes?" they spoke in unison. Tifa sighed in defeat.

"Ya know we're not getting anywhere. Let's just wait till we head back to Edge. We can go to the church, or go meet with Rufus or Reeve, maybe they knows something."

"Or you could just ask us, yo." Reno…red hair, blue eyes…and irritating as all hell.

"This is just getting ridiculous…Aeris, Chaos, and now the Turks…I quit." Yuffie threw a napkin down on the table. Tifa laughed. "Do you guys know anything? Or are you just here to get in the way?"

"We're here to help." Reno said with a look of mock insult.

"Right, sure you are." She rolled her eyes. "Well I say; let's enjoy the last two days of freedom. Clearly we aren't on a timeline yet. Two days will be more than adequate time for us to prepare ourselves. We'll just have to wait and see what Aeris is talking about back at home. Until then," She folded her arms across her chest giving the group a mischievous grin. "I say we enjoy what time we have till it's time to go save the world again." Yuffie for once didn't smile. She didn't want to think about the upcoming situation with her country, her father, and what she was seeing in her dreams. The last one had been a talk with Aeris. Thanks to Vincent casting sleep on her…she'd have to talk to him about that later.

_'Are you really…really sure? I mean, it could be just a hiccup in the lifestream or something, couldn't it?' _

_'I wish it was something that simple.' Aeris spun around, laughing. 'Are we friends? Do you trust me?'_

_'Is that a rhetorical question?'_

_'There is a reason.'_

_'Which is…?' _

_'You need his help' Aeris smiled sweetly. _

_'Ok…ARE YOU NUTS!?' Yuffie spun around looking for the flower girl. She could only hear her laughing..._

"Hey…" Cid tugged on her arm successfully pulling her from her trance. "Wanna go getta drink? I'd say you've earned one." he chuckled at the evil grin she gave him.

"They got Sake in this dump?" She asked, taking his arm.

"Shit, they got everythin' here." He laughed as he took her down to a bar. She was silently amazed at how many bars could be in one building. She counted at least five. Amazing…

"Think it matters I'm only 19?" She said as they each took a seat in a booth.

"C'mon, yer a damn hero. Besides, no one says no to the Venus Gospel!" he laughed heartily. And he was right, no one questioned her age, only remembering her as one of the original nine who had saved the planet. And now here she is, getting ready to do it all over again. _'At least it's not a boring life…'_ She thought idly sipping her drink. Hot Sake never tasted so good. Cloud and everyone came not to long after Cid and Yuffie had finished their third round of drinks. They were cracking jokes, singing ridiculous songs, and being generally unconcerned with the future. Cloud ordered a fourth round.

"Should get Vinnie boy here a drink! He never drinks, it'd be fun!" Yuffie giggled. Vincent merely rolled his eyes. She wasn't drunk, just loosening up. Cloud laughed and gave Vincent a good natured jab. "Come oooon…" She dangled a small cup of Sake in front of him, managing not to spill a drop. "You know you really want to." She grinned as he sighed and took the offered drink.

"Happy?" She poured more as he went to hand her the cup.

"Almost." She chirped.

Vincent gave her an ominous look, to which she merely laughed harder.

**_'She's definitely intimidated by you. See? You've lost your edge…You need me.' _**Chaos mocked from somewhere in the back of his mind.

_'I didn't **need** an edge anymore. It was over…you were gone, the threats had all been eliminated-'_

_**'Except for one apparently…'**_

Cloud and Yuffie exchanged glances.

"Except one…" he spoke softly, earning him six stares varying in degrees of concern.

"How much did you give him?" Cloud cocked an eye brow.

"I think that's only his fourth cup…look at them though, they're little cups!" She held the shot glass sized cup to Cloud for inspection.

"Strong Sake?" He took a sip, shaking his head.

"I'm not drunk…" Vincent made no effort to hide his irritation. "I was simply thinking...aloud. Something seems a little out of place."

"What, about Yuffie running Wutai into the ground?" Cid saw stars not a second after the words left his mouth.

"It's not _about_ Yuffie. She's the bait." He looked at her.

"You should stop drinking…" Yuffie went to take the cup. Vincent held it up out of her reach.

"I am not drunk! I just think there might be something we're over looking. Why would they want to kill you? Wutai isn't exactly the warrior nation it once was and…" He was lost in his own thought process. Yuffie was still trying to crawl up his arm for the cup. "I think we should...what are you doing?" He looked over to the ninja half way up his arm. She jumped back, giggling.

"What are you talking about?" Cloud was intent on getting to the bottom of this.

"Two days. Just two, insignificant, lazy days. Is that too much to ask?! I think not. Stop! Stop climbing on him, stop almost making sense!" Tifa pointed and accusing finger at Vincent. "You, stop encouraging him." Tifa jabbed Cloud in the chest. "We are going to **_wait_** till we get **back**!" She slammed her fist down on the table. Yuffie ordered a fifth and sixth round and by the tenth she was feeling the effects of her sake. She hoped up from her seat and wandered off.

* * *

Walking down empty halls till she found a quiet balcony. Directly about was an overhang she sprang up onto, none too gracefully. And kept going up till she found herself as far up as she could get on the building. It was quiet and beautiful. She had started to enjoy the silence more now. Now that she actually needed to think. She still had a lot of emotions to reason with.

_'Am I a burden? If I go back to Wutai without them…' _She looked up to the stars, hoping for some divine answer. _'They can't be worried about me when they have real trouble. I shouldn't be putting them through all this.' _She closed her eyes, taking in all the different sounds and smells. The music filtered up:

**_With your feet in the air,  
and your head on the ground  
Try this trick and spin it!  
Yeah!  
Your head will collapse,  
but there's nothing in it  
And you'll ask yourself?_**

**_chorus:  
Where is my mind?  
Where is my mind?  
Where is my mind?  
Way out, in the water see it swimmin´_**

**_I was swimmin´ in the Caribbean  
Animals would hide behind the rocks.  
Except the little fish  
but he told me east was west  
Tryin' to talk_**

**_chorus:  
Where is my mind?  
Where is my mind?  
Where is my mind?  
Way out, in the water see it swimmin´?_**

**_With your feet in the air,and your head on the ground  
try this trick and spin it! Yeah!  
Your head will collapse if there's nothing in it  
and you'll ask yourself_**

**_chorus:  
Where is my mind?  
Where is my mind?  
Where is my mind?  
Way out, in the water see it swimmin´_**

She hadn't heard him approach, hadn't noticed how close he was. She slowly opened her eyes, carefully raising her head to level a stare at him. His cape flowing freely in the wind, she stood, shakily, and made her way toward him. He reached out to steady her. _'Why is he always there? Always…waiting.'_ She stood there, eyes locked with his.

"Why?" She was so close she could feel his breath on her forehead. She refused to look him in the eye. _'This isn't happening. I'm not here…' _She was nervous.

"Why what?" His voice was deep and just as soft.

"Why are you here? Why are you always right there, with that look, like you have nothing left, like you're just waiting to die!" She glared at him. "Why are you always there when I need you?!"

He couldn't breathe, he moved closer to her. "Yuffie…I…" He tried to make a sentence happen, but couldn't seem to find the right words. She couldn't make sense of anything, alcohol still leaving her in a heavy fog. She raised her hands slowly to his chest.

"…Vincent…"She breathed, looking up at him. Her stormy eyes paralyzing him. He leaned closer, his forehead against hers, sighing in what may have been defeat, as he couldn't lift a finger to reach out and touch her at that moment. His hands were hovering mere centimeters from her skin. His lips doing much the same. "This is wrong…" She spoke softly, unmoving.

"I know…" his eyes were a brilliant crimson, burned into her memory. White fire consumed her. Her mind blanking completely as he closed in on her. His lips crashed into hers in a fervent kiss, his hands grabbing her roughly and crushing her body to him. The image of her straddling him burned into his memory. Without breaking contact, he reached down and picked her up by her thighs, pinning her against the statue she'd earlier sought refuge beside. A soft moan escaped her lips, fueling him all the more. The desire to make her his was overwhelming…and frightening. The feel of her skin, the way she eagerly met each kiss and caress with one of her own. Her hands went to his hair, pulling him deeper into the kiss…

**_'Vincent!"_** The roar burned him as it sent crippling waves of pain coursing through his body. His eyes shot open. He could hear Yuffie gasp in surprise. His reflexes dulled only slightly by the alcohol and the confusion of the moment. He spun, drawing Death Penalty and coming face to barrel of an exact replica of his gun held by an exact replica of…him. **_'Do not hesitate! Shoot!' _**The demon roared within him, clawing fiercely at his mind for control. Trying to force any and every nerve he could to move. **_'What are you staring at?! You have seen clones before, haven't you?!' _**That was exactly it. It was a clone. Only this Vincent had short hair, much like Clouds. His eyes were just as crimson red, and his twisted smile was clearly the same as his own. _'It can't be…He wouldn't have. That's just…insane.' _Vincent stared in disbelief. **_'See it, believe it, and SHOOT IT!'_** Vincent fired off three shots, his clone easily dodging them and retaliating with a few of his own. They paused again, sizing one another up. His clone gave a dark grin, raised his own weapon to fire.

"…**_Doom of the Living_**!" Yuffie flew into action, almost disappearing with each attack, landing the fifteenth strike and nearly killing the clone.

"Heh…think…y-you…can stop-p-p us-sh? Weak insignificant mortal girl…" It even sounded like Vincent. He gurgled as he spoke, choking on blood, holding his wounded body up with no small amount of effort. Yuffie reached out to grab him, but he was too quick, diving head first, off the roof and disappearing into the darkness beyond.

Yuffie turned to Vincent. She was panting, holding her Shuriken firmly in one hand. Her eyes were dark and angry.

"Yuffie-" She glared at him. Something she hadn't done since they first met and she failed to steal his materia and gun. But this wasn't the _'damn, caught again,'_ face. She was furious and confused.

_**'Where does she keep that?' **'Shut up…' _His heart was hammering in his chest. _'What the hell just happened?'_ He could still feel her lips on his. _'This is wrong…'_ The words began to filter through, as if he was just now coming to grips with their meaning.

"Stop… Let's just go find the others…" She followed the clone's example, and easily began the journey down toward the lights and music.

**_'And you doubted my true intentions…truly, I'm hurt. Too bad about the interruption though…'_** Chaos began mocking him. Nothing made him angrier than that demon at that exact moment. _'You did that?…Don't use me to fulfill your damned desires. She's not a toy.' _He mentally chastised. **_'You wanted it just as much…'_**

"But I wouldn't have done that!" He yelled…more like roared to no one unparticular. But the demon was right, he had wanted her…but even she knew it was wrong. **_'Move on, no time to wallow in guilt. At least this one isn't as frail as that other woman…Lucrecia.'_**

_'…don't ever mention her again. I'll not have you defiling her beautiful name…'_ With that he followed Yuffie toward the group.

_---Well I've scrapped it twice, rewritten it…and even now I wanna start over. But, if I don't post it I'll wind up writing it again…and again until the end of time. I know where I wanted it to go…but I'm wondering if I should just leave out the odd relationship issues till later. Hmm…I'll wait to see what you think. Sorry about the wait…I think I might rewrite this one…again. Any ideas?_

_Ps…That's 'Where is My Mind?' By the Pixies…or Placebo. Take your pick, both bands rock.  
_


	6. Let this last

_Ok…new chapter. This one I only rewrote once. I hope it's not too far out there. I decided to try and put some back story in there, but I think I gave up part way through…I can't remember. :sighs: Oh sheesh…oh, and is the airship the Sherra or the Sierra…I remember the highwind, but that was in the first game. I'm guessing based on other fanfics. So if I'm wrong lemme know and I'll fix it…ok, go enjoy this attempt at making more plot happen._

* * *

"**You WHAT?!" **Tifa fumed at a small piece of paper. "Of all the indignant, irresponsible….STUPID, things to do! **CLOOOUD!!!**" She practically screamed down the hall. He came running. 

"I heard, Vincent says there's a…what's that?" He was glancing between Tifa's tear streaked face and the letter shaking violently in her hand.

"She's gone." Tifa shoved the paper in Clouds face. "Gone! She says, and I quote: "Wutai needs me. I have to return and take responsibility as the rightful heir of the nation." End fucking quote!" Tifa was angry, panicky and did what every highly emotional woman in her situation would do. She fainted. Barret reacted quickly, waving something under her nose after and a second later her eyes flew open.

"Don't go all damsel in distress on us! We need you." Barret sounded more worried than she was. She laughed lightly…

"Well shit." Cid huffed. "God damned, pig headed little princess. I'll go get the Sierra ready." He snapped the toothpick in his mouth.

"I'll call Reeve, find out what he knows!" Reno chimed in, dragging Rude out behind him. His usual mannerisms forgotten for the moment, as the importance of the situation sank in.

"Ok, everyone else with Cid. Let's just go find her before something else goes wrong." Tifa rubbed her temples in irritation. Cloud stood quietly before her. "This is all going to hell." She sighed and leaned into him, resting her forehead on his chest. "You remember the first time I rode a chocobo?" She laughed at the memory. "You were telling me to hold here, not so tight, not so rough, don't move there." She motioned with her hands. "I still fell off and the stupid thing bit me." He laughed as she scowled at the thought of the bird biting her.

"Your dad was going to kill that one and eat it." He ran his hands down her shoulders gently. She sighed, holding his hand as they stood a moment longer in the room.

"Ha, I wonder why I'd think of that now." She inhaled his scent, like lilies and yet somehow very masculine. "Cloud…"her voice was a whisper.

"We'll find her. We know where she's going at least. She left most of her materia. She'll definitely want that back." They looked over to the bed, there sat a small tattered rucksack full of beautiful materia. "It's going to be ok, this wont be like before. We'll get to her in time. Besides, she's more than capable of taking care of herself." Cloud smirked. He slowly extended a gloved hand out, tilting her chin up towards his face. For a moment she was lost in that feeling, that smell, touch…everything. No matter how many times he kissed her, she still had the same reaction.

"I know…" Tifa spoke softly, leaning further into his touch. "We should hurry." With some effort she managed to turn and grab the sack of materia before quickly heading to the Sierra.

They were all on the airship now, ready to leave. Tifa did a quick head count.

"Okay, guys…we lost another one." She crossed her arms, once again rubbing her temples in frustration.

"Who?" Barret glanced around, still not noticing.

"I'll give ya three fuckin' guesses." Cid, not looking up, continued prepping the ship for their departure.

"Who? Tall dark and spooky?" Barret huffed. "Maybe he's just chillin' in some dark room…you know, like he always does."

"Did we lose a chocobo?" Cloud came up from the hatch where the birds were kept.

"That'd be a no. Shit, we're batin' a thousand tonight." Tifa shot Cid a withering glare. "Oh please! It's fucking Vincent-tall, dark and, undead-possessed by the most powerful demon to grace us with his goddamned presence-Valentine! He's not gonna get whacked by some cheesy remake, Tifa! Let's just get the hell outta here and find that brat!" Cid was worried. No, he was terrified. _'If anyone lays a hand on her, so help me.'_ He hadn't been this scared in a long time. "She's the one who needs us…"he finished quietly. "Hang on!" The engines roared to life as the vessel rocketed away from the Golden Saucer. Reno was thrown back into Cloud, who in turn was knocked back and slammed into Barret successfully knocking him down and out the door and onto the main deck. Tifa and Red ran after the heap as they collided with a wall.

"You guys ok?" She cautiously reached out to what she thought might be Cloud's leg. Red latched onto Reno's jacket and gave a strong tug, successfully ripping the expensive coat while pulling him free at the same time.

"If it's not one thing it's another…" Cloud sighed as he stood, dusting himself off. Under any other circumstance they all would have laughed. However, now it just served as an irritating lapse in judgment on the red headed Turk's part.

Tifa sighed for the millionth time that day. _'Please be safe, Yuffie.'_ She hoped, against all odds, that they'd find her first.

* * *

It was cold. It was _freezing_ cold, and wet. Yuffie didn't care though. She had other things to think about.

_'This is the most logical course of action. Reason and responsibility dictate I must go through this alone.'_ She urged the chocobo on. It ruffled its feathers slightly, clearly agitated by the weather, it had started raining twenty minutes ago. Twenty long, agonizing, minutes ago. It'd been about three hours since she left the saucer and found her first wild gold chocobo. True to form, they were indeed very friendly creatures. She'd saved it from a rather nasty magic pot. The pot she found entirely by accident. She had been minding her own business, trying to catch up to the chocobo she'd been following, when it sprang from the bushes in an attempt to startle her-which it did with flying colors. In being startled, she jumped, by jumping she stumbled, and fell, thus disturbing the sleeping pot. It hadn't been a problem, especially with the giant golden chocobo helping her, not that she'd needed any help in dispatching of her porcelain friend. A quick debate over what to give it, finally deciding on a hi-potion and a carefully plucked golden feather, it left her a beautiful hair comb adorned with a trio of gold rimed and colorful orchids decorating the top. _'Nice bonus.'_ She laughed at the pot.

However, now she was cold and wet. The novelty of the chocobo and, incredible luck of running into a magic pot, wearing off and the reality of the weather settling in. _'Should probably find a place to seek shelter. It'll be at least another day before I can get to Wutai.' _She never understood how no matter where you were, everything was a day away on the golden chocobos. It'd take several hours via airship. But she was deathly allergic to heights and moving once up there. _'What ninja gets freaking airsick!?'_ She thought angrily to herself.

"Well come on, we gotta get out of this rain." She slid off the Chocobo's back and onto the ground. There was a nice sized cave made out of branches and a gnarled old tree trunk. It wasn't ideal, but it was more than satisfactory for the time being. She pulled off most of her wet clothes and gear and pulled a blanket out of her pack. Using a mastered fire materia from her Conformer she started a small fire. They were hidden enough in the tree there wouldn't be any threat of anyone seeing them. "Well kiddo, looks like you're stuck with me for one more day." She scratched the birds back affectionately. It gave a pleasant wark. "I think I will name you Aura. Sorry, can't think of anything better. Plus, you have this weird glow" She motioned to the glow emitting from the resting birds feathers. "…probably just the fire and your golden feathers…" She smiled at the chocobo as it nestled its head slightly under a wing to sleep out the storm. "Good idea." She yawned, checking to make sure nothing would burn and that they were safely hidden from prying eyes. "Night…"

* * *

He drove the heavy bird on through the storm. He had to find her, had to set things right. Most importantly…he needed to protect her. That _thing _was after him, not so much her. Even though he'd be putting her in danger, he had to be there to protect her. Although he could be very sure that her death in the tussle would have been a rather large bonus.

'_Why does it look like me?'_ he knew Chaos had to know…or he wouldn't have been brought back.

_**'What do you mean "looks" like? He is you, imbecile.'**_ Clearly he was upset at the sudden intrusion. _**'You never spoke this much before…I do not see a reason to explain my motives to you.'**_

_'That is not what I am asking…I asked about the clone. What is it doing here? He has my weapon and speed…'_

_**'Vincent, it is an **_**exact**_** clone. Your memories, desires, power, and your secrets.'**_

_'You mean to say, he can change into you as well?' _Vincent found this very unsettling. It couldn't be. He was in possession of Chaos.

_**'We are unsure…You must stop talking to me for now. It can sense us…'**_ Vincent couldn't stop thinking about the clone. _If it is like me…completely…it couldn't be possible, but that would explain the necessary return of Chaos._ An aggravated wark from the chocobo shook him out of his thoughts.Even he couldn't keep this pace up much longer. The rain was getting heavier and it was becoming difficult to see. The black Chocobo was growing weary as well.

"All right. We shall seek shelter." He eyed the forest they were approaching. _'Is that a…fire?' _He could barely make out the slight flicker of light. A lesser man, or really anyone else, would have missed it completely. He made his way toward it. Sheer curiosity drove him closer. The black bird suddenly perked up. A musical sound filtered through the storm as only a chocobo wark could. The black chocobo answered with one just as sweet and without so much as a questioning tug, the bird charged for the cave shaped tree.

* * *

"What in the name of all that is holy and sacred are _you_ chirping at?" Yuffie growled at the golden bird she was nestled beside. It merely nudged her gently as it made to stand. She shivered under the heavy blanket. A black tipped beak followed closely by a flurry of very black feathers shot through the opening. "No way, another one?" Yuffie whispered to herself. It always amazed her how friendly these creatures were to one another and especially to people. No other animal in the world would willingly run out and save a human for no particular reason. They didn't seem to care whether you were good or bad, they'd help. Even Sephiroth had a chocobo. A large golden female, one which stayed with him all the way up to Nibelhiem and then was last seen wandering out by the crater he had died in. She'd heard of similar stories of the magnificent birds loyally following their owners to war and even dieing for them. Their hearts held such an amazing capacity to love, regardless of circumstance or character. She realized with a start that this one had a bridle on…and a voice? 

"…good work." That was _his_ voice. He dismounted and was unbuckling the saddle while she sat dumbfounded. He stopped dead in his tracks as he rounded the bird coming face to face with her. "Yuffie…" his voice held an unusual tone of relief. He carefully placed his now ruined chocobo saddle to the side.

"How did you-"he cut her off with a surprisingly warm hand. He sat, soaked through, hand over her mouth and, breathing heavily. His eyes were searching her face for something, a sign of anything. She'd never seen him like this before. He was haunted, desolate, hopeful and relieved all at the same time. Without thinking she began to unfasten his heavy, wet cloak. Her hands were shaking; his hand was still on her mouth. He slowly moved his hand away, gently running his gloved fingers down her cheek. His eyes focused on her lips as she worked. She was biting down on her bottom lip in concentration as she fussed over the buckles making up his outer leather armor. He brought a hand down to stop her, slowly she lifted her eyes to meet his. It was a look no one had ever seen on him, something very unlike the cold, heartless image everyone had of him. It was her look. The one he gave her when no one was watching. No one knew, or really realized how close the two really were. She was a little brat, and he was the only responsible adult to be able to withstand her tantrums, incessant talking, and annoying knack for stealing. Little did anyone realize…he truly cared for her. Through everything he'd begun to realize the budding feelings, and it always made him so uncomfortable. With Chaos he'd hardly been able to trust himself, let alone anyone else. It had always been Lucrecia, and the demon was loathe to let him forget that. Conjuring up old memories and filling his soul with guilt. However, after they successfully destroyed the last of the Deepground soldiers, it had been that very woman who saved him. He had atoned and had been forgiven. So why was he so afraid of this little woman? This slight, childish and, egotistical little ninja…

He was looking at her, staring right through her. He was also dripping all over her warm blanket. _'And the damn birds are watching us!'_ for some reason that realization brought a slight blush to her cheeks. He noticed.

"Yuffie…I didn't mean to upset you. I shouldn't have…" That hushed tone, the way she could feel the gentle vibration of him speaking while she finished with the last buckle of his leather outerwear. Rising to her knees, blanket still firmly wrapped around her, she slowly and cautiously slid the material off his shoulders, exposing an off white, flowing shirt stained with blood and sweat. His muscles tensed under her scrutinizing gaze. She slowly brought her eyes up to meet his. He sat on his heels while she was up on her knees, putting them eye level with one another. "I…I am-"she lifted a hand to his hair, successfully distracting him from speaking further. Gently, she slid one slender hand under the cloth holding his hair back from his face. She leaned in closer till she could feel his breath on her neck as she peeled the garment from his hair, using extra care not to pull a single wayward strand. His hair, wet as it was, still managed to fall like a cascading veil of silk against his shoulders and into his eyes. She leaned back, still able to make out the crimson orbs glowing in the firelight. She stared, breathless at his insurpasable beauty. Her heart slammed into her rib cage with each breath she took. _'oh god…'_ her breath caught in her throat.

"I know…" she whispered with a sigh she glanced down to his hands. She was well aware of how _'wrong'_ this could be…

* * *

_"Vincent! You're back, Gods I was so worried about you!" Yuffie beamed up at him, hugging him fiercely. _

_"You really should not have. I am perfectly fine." His tone held an edge to it. Her enthusiasm dimmed slightly as she backed away, feeling suddenly awkward._

_"I know, I just couldn't help it…you know? You were gone…but I'm glad you came home." She looked down, ready to leave. She made it as far as the door to his room when a pair of strong arms encircled her waist. She leaned back slightly, her head resting on his chest. He bent down, capturing her lips in a soft, achingly gentle kiss. Her body burned at the sudden contact. He kissed lower down her jaw line and back up._

_"I…apologize. I never meant to worry you." He whispered against her ear. She gasped at the feeling. He carefully turned her to face him. He looked so different when he came back. Like a weight had been lifted. Shelke had informed everyone that he had returned and did not wish to be disturbed. Everyone that is, except Yuffie. She gave the ninja a rare, warm smile. 'Go to him…' and with that the enigmatic child left the bar. Now, Yuffie was being assaulted by all sorts of new sensations and emotions. He cupped her cheek in his golden claw with such delicacy and care it surprised even him. She leaned into it, placing a single kiss in its palm, unfazed by the metal._

_"…Vincent…I…" He stopped her with another soft and yet somehow sorrowful, kiss. _

_"This is wrong…"her world stopped and promptly began to crumble at her feet. He opened the door and ushered her out, shutting it before she could even think of a protest. 'This is wrong.' The words repeated themselves endlessly through her mind. _

_'But…why?'_

She had left that night for Wutai and had not said a word of the incident to anyone. It wasn't long after that her father fallen ill, leaving her in a position she'd hoped would never be hers.

Vincent had hurt her and for almost a year she had been able to pretend nothing had happened, focusing her energy toward her fathers recovery and handling matters in Wutai. Tifa had been the only one to visit, and that was mostly because Yuffie disappeared, leaving a note stuck to her borrowed room with a kunai. Tifa mothered the life out of Yuffie sometimes, sometimes Yuffie was grateful for the help, which is admitting a lot for a stubborn, self sufficient ninja such as herself.

* * *

She carefully brought a hand up to slide her fingers through his curtain of black hair. She gently caressed his cheek down to his lips, still not raising her eyes. She memorized the way his skin felt against hers. He let out a low growl and caught her hand in the middle of its journey across his delicate mouth. Her eyes shot up in time to see him come crashing down on her once again. His lips burning her own, leaving a hot trail of shame and pleasure down her neck. She wanted it, knew it was wrong, and was fairly sure this had something to do with the demon that was once again rooted deeply in Vincent's subconscious.

"Vincent…" She wanted him to stay, wanted this feeling to last forever. A fire began, burning just beneath her skin. He answered with another passionate kiss. She sighed into him, forgetting for a moment what exactly was going on.

"I never…never… intended for _this_ to happen…"he gasped in a voice that still sounded much more like a growl than talking. "I was so…_careful_…and kept you so far aw-"his voice faltered as his roaming hands came in contact with bare skin…she was fairly undressed beneath this blanket. That seemed to snap his attention back to the present. "This couldn't happen at a more inappropriate time…" He pulled himself back, careful not to look at her.

"Let it…Vincent…" He failed. He looked into her eyes and for the first time in over thirty years his heart gave a flutter. His pulse quickened, he nervously brought a hand out to the blanket, letting it fall to the ground. He openly admired her form, no longer the lanky tomboy, now she held that soft shape of a woman. She had a small shirt on and even smaller shorts, leaving very little to his imagination. _'Oh, Gods help me…'_ there was soon to be no turning back. She caught his chin, raising his eyes to hers, wrapping one hand back into his hair and pulling him closer to her…"I need this…" The feeling of her kissing up the side of his face toward his ear sent shock waves of pleasure that hit him like a boot to the chest. He pulled her onto his lap, wrapping the blanket around them both. _'She needs this…'_ his eyes closed as she left a trail of fire wherever her lips went. "…I need…you." He wasn't sure if she'd actually spoken, or if he'd just made that last part up. He tightened his hold on her waist with his metal hand. _'Please let this last…'_ Incidentally an image of Lucrecia came to mind. _'I need this…'_ he felt his willpower draining with each kiss and caress. The feeling of her, shifting and writhing under his ministrations all the while still seated firmly astride him… _'What have I done…?' _He was lost to the world as the last buckle securing his leather pants gently snapped with a nearly inaudible _clink_…

* * *

"I can't see a goddamned thing!" Cid roared at the nightmarish clouds. He was answered with a loud crack of thunder preceded by a flash of lightning. "SHUT UP!" He roared back in defiance.

"Any luck?" Tifa gently placed a blanket around his shoulders.

"…no." He sighed deeply, concern marring his handsome face. Tifa smiled to herself. Who would have thought the pilot cared so much about that '_little__brat'_.

"We need to go higher than the storm…We'll have to find a safe place to wait it out." She gave his arm a gentle squeeze. "Don't worry; I'm sure she's fine. Probably resting at an Inn right now, laughing at us." Cid did smile at that.

"Yeah, yer probably right." He switched the intercom on. "I'm taking us to Cosmo Canyon to wait out this damned storm." The com clicked off. "Well, we should be there in an hour or two. I guess then we wait it out or wait to hear from her…" There was an edge of unease to his voice. "She better not get in a shit storm o' trouble!" He slammed his fist down to punctuate the statement.

"Cid, its Yuffie, we'll be lucky if she _doesn't_ get into a whole heap of trouble."

"Well, maybe we can get there by chocobo first thing, if the storm doesn't clear." Cloud tried to sound hopeful.

"Agreed, I can stay with Cid…if he'll stay that is…and wait for news." Red pawed at his seat nervously.

"Well damn...seems like it's takin' forever ta get to that little brat this time." Barret rubbed his eyes in exhaustion. "When the hell we gonna get a real damned vacation?!" There was a collective sigh from everyone present.

* * *

_Um… ok this chapter has some randomness in it. I was distracted…But I'm also trying to slow it down. I think I'm pushing the story too fast and I'll wind up complicating things much more than necessary. Plus…it makes it more interesting if you veer off topic…I hope? Sorry if there are spelling or grammar errors, my computers spell check is on the fritz._


	7. Simple Release

_**A/N:** Well…ok this chapter just picks up right where Yuffie and Vincent left off…this is why the rating changed. The plot isn't so much as here...  
_

The last buckle came undone. She was pressed firmly against him, the very picture of beauty. Her skin seemed to glow in the light of the fire and, her hair framed her face, making her appear so like an angle. His breath caught in his throat as she gave a shy smile before kissing him again. His will power successfully drained, he gave one last valiant effort to stop himself before something he was sure they'd both regret later happened.

"Yuffie…I-"she silenced him with another kiss. He sighed into her. He reveled in the feeling of her, her hands everywhere, it surprised him that she didn't flinching as warm fingers came in contact with the cold metal of his claw. His strength left him as she began working the white shirt off, submitting eagerly to his gentle hands slipping under her shirt. She let out a breathy moan as he grazed the flat of her stomach, moving around to cup her rear. She slowly pulled his shirt over his head, breaking contact only for a moment. "What are…"his voice faltered as she trailed hot kisses over the newly exposed skin, his hand automatically going back to its previous location.

He was becoming painfully aware of two things, his lack of control being the more pressing of the two. With much effort he slipped his hands off of her, urging her to pull back slightly.

"Vincent…"she half groaned into his hair. "…God's, Vincent. Is it so hard to touch me?" She rested her forehead against his, her voice wavered slightly, with one hand hovered over the last undone buckle of his leather pants. He fought for control, clawing for anything that would slow him down. Even Chaos seemed to have abandoned him. Her voice brought him back. _'How can I not?'_ he had to force himself to move quickly enough to stop her. She moved to get up, suddenly very ashamed.

_'Gods I'm so stupid…what the hell was I-'_ her thought was cut short when she found herself beneath all six feet of him, his hair making a sort of barrier around them. His eyes were dark and filled with something she couldn't quite identify.

He groaned slightly at the sight and feeling of her beneath him. Her legs spread enough for him to lie between them. Slowly he brought himself down to her, resting on his elbows. He began to kiss a trail from her temples down her neck. He held her hands down over her head, preventing her from moving even an inch. She moaned softly as he kissed and nipped his way down to her shoulders, legs wrapping around his waist. He shifted slightly, encasing both her small hands in one of his. With his metal hand, he carefully ran one finger down her side. She began to writhe and sigh as he began to work his way down to her hips. With one carefully calculated movement, followed by the soft sound of cloth tearing, her shorts had been ripped almost completely off. He buried his head in her neck, kissing and tasting the skin he could reach. She felt the metal hand make its way to the straps of her shirt, followed by similar ripping sounds.

"You have no idea what you're getting yourself into, _princess._" His voice was deep and husky, thick with desire. She felt a chill run down her spine, a smile played across his lips. "…are you…sure… you want this?" He was moving at an agonizing pace, pealing what was left of the small shirt off of her. The feeling of the cool metal against her burning skin was nearly more than she could handle.

"…yes…God's yes…I'm sure…"she gasped as the shirt was fully removed leaving her bare skin against his. _'He's…warm.'_ She noticed with mild surprise. He let out a soft sigh as her skin brushed his. He moved his metal hand up to her hands, releasing his good hand. He carefully peeled back the fingerless glove with his teeth. He brought his hand down to cup one delicate breast. A shock went through her as his thumb brushed across the sensitive skin, causing her back to arch and forcing her deeper into the touch. He kissed along her throat, gently nipping at the junction of her neck and shoulders. He was rewarded with another breathy moan. He released her hands and quickly wrapped is metal clad arm around her delicate waist as her hands went to his shoulders. Another well placed kiss and her nails dug into his shoulder causing him to gasp as he continued a marking a path down her collar bone and between the gentle curves of her lightly heaving breasts. Her already shallow breathing became a breathless pant as he began to trace the outline of one pert nipple with his tongue, leaving his fingers to memorize the other. Her hands fisted in his hair as she began to writhe and move uncontrollably beneath him. Her eyes, which were clamped shut, shot open as she let out an unintentional groan at the loss of his lips. She felt him smile as he shifted and lavished the other breast with the same attention; her eyes closing again as the feeling over took her.

His metal claw slowly moved down to her hip, ripping the little shorts further. Her hands shot down to his waist, working the firm leather loose from his body.

"I always thought they were form fitting…didn't realize they were practically _painted_ on!" She growled in frustration. A low chuckle rose from deep in his chest, growing into a sound she'd never heard come out of him. She blinked a few times, hands ceasing their movement as her brain began to race, trying to compute the noise he made. "You're…laughing?" He smiled, laughing a little deeper. It was an amazing sound. Her heart melted as she smiled warmly up at him, "Holy Leviathan! You are really laughing."

"Mmm…" he moved slowly against her as he shifted out of the unreasonably tight leather. "Is it so strange?" he situated his now nearly nude form between her legs…_'warm, inviting legs…'_ he sighed into her hair, now free of the burdensome clothes. "…Yuffie…" his voice sounded oddly strained.

"It is a wonderful sound…" she inhaled sharply as his body made contact with hers. A gentle wark successfully halted their progress. "Damn! The birds really _are_ watching." Yuffie hissed in disbelief at them, both heads tucked under their respective wings, eyes trained on Yuffie and Vincent lying in a most intimate position. With a growl he lifted her off the ground in one smooth motion, keeping her legs firmly around his waist. A loud roar of thunder and flash of lightning illuminated the tree momentarily. He ducked around a few low branches to reveal a smaller cave like section. Yuffie's eyes danced in the receding fire light.

"There, safe from prying eyes…" He spoke softly, his deep voice send a jolt of pleasure threw her.

She suddenly found she couldn't speak as a hand made its way to the small of her back, tracing delicate circles across the skin as he crushed the rest of his heavy frame against hers. She let a hand drift down to the last bit of cloth that was acting as an all too flimsy barrier between them. She lifted her hips in an effort to help him remove what was left of the shorts. However, the movement only pushed her firmly into him, eliciting a groan from Vincent. He braced her against the branches as he worked the tattered fabric down her legs. Her breath hitched as he started to kiss his way up her legs from her ankles. He nipped the inside of her thigh, earning him a startled cry. She panted, unable to hold still as his mouth worked its further up. He rose slowly, carefully situating himself before her.

"Gods…what are you waiting for?" She lifted a hand to his cheek, the other wrapping firmly in his hair and around the base of his neck. She pulled him down into a fierce kiss. She let out a gasp as she came into full contact with the length of his body. Without another word, her hand slipped down the firm muscles of his stomach. She paused, lifting her eyes to meet his nervously. He smiled briefly at her expression. With a slight movement, he positioned himself carefully between her thighs. Her hips bucked slightly, urging him to move faster.

He bit down on her neck, thrusting fully into her. Her nails raked across his back, drawing blood, as she let out a cry mixed with pain and pleasure. He held his position, working hard not to move until she had adjusted. Slowly, she moved against him. He carefully pulled back causing her to gasp as he moved. Another less than gentle thrust, she clung to him as she moaned his name into his neck. He gritted his teeth with each thrust. Kissing along her neck as he carefully made his way to her lips. She gave a deep moan as his lips claimed hers. He ran his human hand through her hair and down to cup her face in one hand. He found he couldn't look away. She was breath taking, lips parted slightly, her skin was aglow with a delicate sheen of sweat and, she was smiling. Her grey eyes caught his, all the air rushed out of his lungs. He crushed his mouth against hers.

He could feel her nearing her release. He paused and pulled away completely, leaving her breathless. He grabbed her thighs again before she could protest the loss of contact. He positioned her down on the blanket that had been wrapped around her and now lay on the ground. She growled at the painfully slow pace he seemed set on staying at. She hooked one leg behind his right knee and planted her other knee in his ribs and pushed, throwing him off balance enough to knock him on his back. She straddled him, he gasped as he gripped her hips firmly. She rose and gave an experimental movement, adjusting to the new position. He pulled himself up slightly to capture her mouth. He began to move her slowly; Yuffie sped up the pace until they were whispering each others names as wave after wave of pleasure washed over the new lovers.

Yuffie was sure she'd left the planet at some point. Her breath came in ragged gasps as she still sat atop Vincent. His head buried in her neck, trailing gentle kisses along the exposed skin. She couldn't quite wrap her head around the feeling of him beneath her; it gave her an odd sense of power over him. Her hands were gently running through his ebony locks.

Somehow he managed to grab his now dry cloak from where they were without moving her. Carefully he wrapped the red material around her. His eyes were slowly moving up her body, taking in every exposed inch. She tilted his chin to look at her. She gave him a gentle, warm smile. One he'd never seen on her before. He carefully tilted his chin, hesitantly leaning forward for her lips in a slow, tentative kiss. She smiled into his lips, deepening the kiss, trying to pour every emotion she could into it.

"…well…" she breathed a sigh of contentment, shifting between his legs and resting her head against his chest. "Thanks for coming to find me…again." She let one hand slowly make its way down the metal arm, fingers entwining with his.

"Was there ever any doubt?" He glanced down at her, nestled against him. When he didn't get a response he carefully moved a wayward lock of his hair from her face, listening to the steady sounds of her breathing as he drifted off as well.

* * *

"I'm going out now! Fuck you if you wanna try an stop me!" Cid howled at Cloud and Barret. "I'll take the other gold bird, I can make it to Wutai in eight fuckin' hours…You idiots can stay here and wait for her to call." He turned to leave. 

"Just wait another two hours for the storm to clear, Cid. We need to be logical about this." Red spoke softly from his hidden position behind Cloud.

"He is right, Cid. It's too dangerous for us to be breaking up now." Cloud said shifting under Cid's burning gaze.

"I'm not fucking waiting. You wanna go then get yer shit and lets fucking GO!" The sounds of shouting had attracted the rest of the group. Tifa, Reno and, Rude stood beside Red in the doorway behind Cloud.

"You're going to look for Yuffie?" Tifa spoke up suddenly. "Right now?"

"Yes. Right this goddamned second…" His voice was low and dangerous.

"I'm going with you." She walked passed Cid, grabbing a heavy leather jacket and Yuffie's rucksack of materia. She turned to face Cid, waiting for him to move.

"What?! You must be outside your mind!" Barret practically screeched back at Tifa. "It's a damn storm outside; you couldn't find your ass with both hands out there!"

Tifa for her part seemed rather unaffected by the weather. "I don't need to, the chocobo can and it knows where Wutai is. I have a princess to slap; I'm going, end of discussion!" She finished with a stomp of her foot. Cid gave her a nod and the two made their way to the stable where Yuffie's black chocobo shifted nervously on its feet, appearing to be just as worried as its human counterparts. They made their way quickly to a third chocobo stall. The bird in question lifted its golden head to peer over at the two. Yuffie had named him Six, since he had escaped Cloud six times before finally submitting to the torturous airship ride.

"We have to take Six. He's the only one who will make it." Cid said calmly. Tifa cocked a delicate brow at his sudden use of people skills. "What? Fuck! There, happy?" He shook his head, checking to make sure his Venus Gospel was securely fastened to the side of the chocobo. "We should make good time, if this bitch of a storm lets up any." He shot a glare out the porthole as another bolt of lightning tore threw the sky.

"Right," Tifa slid her gloves on and wrist guards, "Heh, did you know _all_ of her materia is mastered? The stuff she hasn't stolen I mean." Tifa fished threw the bag. She froze, a soft look gracing her delicate features. A small golden orange feather on a shimmering nearly clear string emerged from the sack.

"What the hell is that, a good luck charm?" Cid eyed the jewelry with a wary eye.

"It's made from a phoenix summon. It was from Aeris' staff. Strange it would break though, ya know? Her staff was with us. It shattered as soon as…" Tifa trailed off with a sigh. "I made one for Yuf. She was so…angry I guess. Or sad, I still can't figure it out. She never cried, not one single tear. The only thing she ever said to me, at least, was 'She deserved better.' And never said a word of it again…" Tifa hopped up on the chocobo, Cid behind her. Tifa tucked the charm in her jacket. _'You better be safe…'_ Tifa furrowed her brows, slid a pair of goggles on to shield her eyes from the rain and gave Cid one last glance. He nodded okay from his position, gripping the reins with a firmly.

They were gone in a flash, moving impossibly fast across the plains of Cosmo Canyon toward Wutai. Cloud watched them leave from the upper level beside Fenrir. He flipped open his phone. "Call when you find her or the storm lets up enough. I'll have Reno fly out there to you." A pause, he nodded giving a noise of agreement. "I'll ride out on my own ahead of them." Another pause, "Yes, I will. Tifa…" he waited for her to respond. "Be careful out there." He wanted to say more but left it at that, knowing full well now would not have been the right time anyway. He hung up. "Reno, get the Sierra ready to move out. We'll head after them as soon as they call."

The red headed Turk gave a quick nod and quickly headed off to the other side of the airship, tugging Rude after him. "Call Reeve, see if he has any idea what's going on." Reno spoke with an air of authority usually reserved for extreme situations.

Cid and Tifa rode all night, stopping once to switch spots so the other could sleep while they went. It would take approximately eighteen hours to ride straight through to Wutai. Tifa had no idea what to do when she got there, she just hoped for a few answers…_'I am going to kick your ass, Yuffie Kisaragi.' _She gave a dark scowl to the stormy night.

* * *

Yuffie and her golden chocobo made their way across the plains just passed Nibelheim. The ocean wasn't far; they could probably cut clean across. Even though these birds had the amazing capacity to walk on water, it still unnerved her to sit on them when they did. She was sure one of these days they'd just fall right in.

"You're a real gold chocobo, right?" She gave a wary glance at the bird. The ocean was flying towards her. The chocobo gave a low wark as is charged head on into the furious waters ahead, leaping the waves as they tried to take the bird down into their icy depths. "Guess that answers that…" She lowered herself on the back of the great bird, flying across the water as if it were nothing. She threw a quick glance over her shoulder to Vincent; he was close behind with a look of sheer determination. It was as if he was trying to will the storm away. She looked away, focusing on her destination, before he caught her staring. _'Come on, only a few more hours. We can do this.'_ They were fairly behind, compared to where they wanted to be. _'I should have known better!'_ Yuffie sucked in a breath as she urged the bird to move faster, not checking to see if Vincent had kept up.

_Ok, I'm sure there had to be some plot in there somewhere. I'm just not sure where. I needed a sort of filler chapter. Mostly Yuffie and Vincent bein' all…you know. Sort of suffering from some serious writers block…and work. Bah! Hope you like it, sorry 'bout the wait._


	8. Chimera

**_A/N:_**_ Yay! My internet is fixed...finally. Well, I think I fixed this one up enough that it shouldn't be to hard to follow and there hopefully wont be as many errors. Anyways, hope you like it!_

It had been all of six hours, Yuffie's butt was now very sore, Vincent was riding right next to her, not sparing her even a slight glance and, there was an airship that looked suspiciously like the Sierra approaching. _'Great, this is exactly what I freaking need! Tifa and Cloud are going to kill me…'_ She shook her head to clear her thoughts. With out warning she gave the chocobo a rather rough jab, sending it into a dead run. Vincent's chocobo gave a startled wark as they too ran after Yuffie. _'Just need to get home, they'll know what to do…right?'_

"Yuffie, you shouldn't push her so hard after having her cross the ocean like that." He chastised lightly. He'd pushed his own chocobo fairly hard just to make it across a few miles passed where she had bolted straight threw the stormy waters. Black chocobos were amazing by any standard, but even they could not cross an ocean…not like the gold.

Yuffie wasn't going to slow down until Vincent and his chocobo rode up beside her. He carefully snagged the reins, tugging lightly to slow the already exhausted chocobo. Both birds were breathing heavily, tired from the exhausting ride from Nibelheim to Wutai's shores through a storm.

They stood looking out to the beautiful forest hitting just at the edge of the sand. She could see the Pagoda sitting proudly on the cliffs of Da Chao. _'Oh Gods, what am I going to tell my father?'_ she glanced at Vincent with no small amount of annoyance. He had come after her yet again. The last time they met like that he was telling her how wrong it was, given their age differences, and of course he brought up the whole "I'm a monster…blah blah…" But he still kissed her, held her and, was furious with her for leaving for Wutai without saying anything. But…her loving him was wrong. _'What the fucking hell am I going to do about last night?'_ she pondered that and her recently developed foul mouth. _'Definitely less time with Cid...' _she paused, seeing the blip that was most likely the Sierra approaching. "Sorry guys…"she whispered to the approaching ship.

"Think that's them?" Yuffie nodded toward the airship.

"I believe so…" he whispered back, head hung slightly. Yuffie gave him a small smile. "I fear I have put you in danger…"

"How can you be so sure it's even me they want? It could be Cloud or Nanaki…or even you. Could be that I'm going to start a chain of events that could destroy the _whole_ universe." She stretched her arms as far across as they could go, adding extra emphasis to whole.

"…I'm not speaking of that." was his cryptic reply. She narrowed her eyes thoughtfully a moment then widened them once she realized just what 'danger' he was referring to.

"I am in no danger what so ever, Vincent Valentine! Try as you might, you can't always hurt me." Yuffie gave him a brilliant smile, her chocobo still stood beside his. "Why do you still worry so much? I have followed you to the ends of the planet, to hell and back, you have saved my life so many times I've lost count. I've seen you command demons and destroy them. I am more than willing to take my chances with you." He was speechless. Completely unable to believe what she was telling him.

"You do not know what you are saying, Yuffie. It isn't right for me…" he couldn't go on. She was staring, still smiling, at him.

"You are such a fool…since when was anything in our lives right?" She was able to lean over and place a chaste kiss on his lips. "Let's get outta here before they catch up." She nudged the chocobo toward the forests edge

* * *

"How many hours did you say this would take? Something like eight hours, was that it? It's been ten…TEN HOURS! Good heaven what's taking so long?" Tifa shifted irritably on the chocobo. Cid chuckled behind her. 

"You said you wanted to go. You should'a-"he stopped suddenly, peering into the distance. "Holy shit, there they are!" He dug his heels into the chocobos side, startling both Tifa and the bird. The bird let out a yelp and bolted in the direction of the other two chocobos. Vincent saw them approaching, he said something to Yuffie as she turned to see them. A look of sheer terror slowly molded itself onto her face.

"You have got to be fucking joking…"Yuffie stared passed Vincent. He raised an eye brow at the sudden use of foul language and glanced behind him at Tifa and Cid, who were racing right toward them. "I'm gonna freaking die. Tifa is going to kill me, punch my head clean off. Cid will bring me back just to kill me again!" she was shifting nervously, trying to pry the reins from Vincent. He smiled faintly under his cloak. She glanced at him and eventually returned the smile.

'**_Move quickly, he's not the only one gaining on you…' _**Vincent winced at the intrusion. Yuffie, out of reflex, reached out to his gold arm to try and comfort him somehow.

"You ok?" she stared for a moment. _'Damn demon…'_

"We have to move, they'll catch up. Something is…" Vincent trailed off as Yuffie collected her reigns, ready to follow him without question.

"Ok. Let's go…"Yuffie sat there, ready to follow him. She pulled a small piece of paper from her bag and began folding it.

"Yuffie, we don't have time-"Vincent cut himself off as Yuffie folded a paper shuriken. She winked at him as she threw it into the ground. Suddenly there was the Conformer, imbedded in the ground.

'_So that's how she hides it…interesting.' _He chuckled lightly to himself. She urged the chocobo forward, suddenly racing to the pagoda. Vincent felt uneasy. He wasn't sure if it was the prospect of going to face Lord Godo, or if it was the feeling of being followed. He glanced back while reaching within to find the demon. _'You've been unusually quiet…'_

'**_It's following us…the creature is closing in on the pair behind you…'_** Suddenly Vincent whipped his chocobo around and drove it toward Cid and Tifa. **_'Fool! Let them distract it, you cannot defeat this alone!'_** Chaos fumed at Vincent. **_'Your compassion will be your downfall…'_**

'_I'll not let my…friends…die to buy me more time. What is that? I feel it, but I do not recognize it.'_ He felt his stomach knot up, the demon was angry.

**_It is a chimera, a Mako enhanced chimera. You four will die…three, it appears your little mate isn't too keen on following you.' _**Vincent glanced back; Yuffie was staring in shock at something just passed him. He turned and almost jerked his chocobos head clean off. Cid and Tifa shot passed him. The creature was bearing down on them from the sky, three heads roaring furiously as large leathery wings carried through the air with frightening speed.

'_That's more than just mako…'_ he worried momentarily about exposing Yuffie to more danger. They were after her. Before he had time to finish his thought Cid's panic edged voice broke threw his thoughts.

"RUN! Tifa was hit; I have to get a remedy out before she passes the fuck out!" Cid yelled angrily, Vincent spun following them. Yuffie readied her weapon. As soon as the two chocobos were at a safe distance she launched it, casting flare at the same moment. The weapon hit and the spell went off, creating a large crater around the massive beast. Yuffie caught her Conformer with practiced grace. The tips were glowing orange from the heat of the spell. Vincent reached into Cid's pack and produced the needed remedy while Cid carefully balanced Tifa, and aimed the chocobo toward the city. Vincent managed to sidle his chocobo alongside theirs and pour the liquid into Tifa's mouth. She coughed weakly, groaning at the taste of the deep green liquid. Almost immediately she was alert again. Yuffie caught up to them as she attached her Conformer to its holster on her back.

"There, problem solved. How's Tifa?" Yuffie glanced at the older woman, grinning at her easy victory.

'**_It is far from dead…Her pathetic attack is hardly enough to hurt it.'_** Chaos replied to Yuffie's arrogant declaration that she killed the furious monster.

"It's moving again…" Vincent replied, an edge of irritation in his deep voice. Yuffie suddenly felt very small.

"But I hit it with flare, how could it survive that? It's just a weak ol' monster…" She glanced back to the singed form as it shifted and began to right itself, one of its three heads screeching in pain.

"You should be paying closer attention to your targets, not firing off whatever you feel like at the time! Now is not a time to be showing off, Yuffie. That creature is mako enhanced, materia won't be enough." His voice was stern, like her father when he used to scold her for stealing or getting her clothes dirty. _'Treating me like I'm nothing more than a child…'_

She gave a hard stare back at the creature moving…_'What the hell is that thing?'_ She glanced at Vincent, eyes devoid of any emotion. He blinked at her in surprise but said nothing. "How do we proceed?" The change was quick, like she was alternating between personalities. She adjusted her weapon carefully. Checking what materia she had. _'Flare, fire, ultima, a cure and a summon for Shiva.' _She silently berated herself for leaving all the other useful materia at the golden saucer. She could use the matra magic now. That one was mastered and had everything she'd ever need in it.

Everyone dismounted the chocobos. The birds stood back, but refused to run. Six stood defensively in front of Tifa, who was still a little weak from the poison. Aura and the black chocobo Vincent had been riding also moved near Six, sensing the woman behind it was injured. Six lowered his body to allow her access to the pack on its side and to also create a living shield while she managed to get her gloves on. She pulled a potion out of the side pouch. She plugged her nose and swallowed it in one gulp, gagging immediately after. Cid shot her a concerned glance at the sound she made.

"I'm fine, potions just taste really awful…"she smiled at him. She grabbed her phone, Cloud picked up before it finished its first ring. "Get down here! We have a really big problem…" She didn't have to finish her sentence. The sound of Fenrir's engines roaring to life could be heard from the ground. Everyone glanced up in time to see the motorcycle rocket off the back of the airship. A red blur followed close behind. Cloud and Barret rode passed the beast that was quickly regaining full consciousness. Red leaped over one of the heads. The Sierra continued its journey toward Wutai. Cid gave a worried glance back at the airship. "Don't worry…" Tifa shouted, "Reno knows how to fly an airship, plus your crew is taking good care of her-"

"YOU LET THAT LITTLE SHIT FLY MY SHIP!?" Cid roared at Tifa. Before she had time to respond Barret was at his side.

"What the _fuck_ is that shit?!" Barret bellowed at Cid, who was still glaring at his retreating airship as if he could somehow change the fact that Reno now piloted his 'baby.'

"That there is a problem of epic proportions. It's a dragon…or something." Tifa began to tie her hair out of her face. Cloud opened up the sword case checking to make sure everything was ready.

"Are you going to be alright?" Cloud was scrutinizing Tifa, trying to reassure himself that she'd be fine.

"Go...I'm fine, really." Smiling at his concern she waved him off, still holding onto Yuffies bag of materia. "Oh, Yuffie!" Tifa turned to toss the bag of materia to the ninja only to be greeted by empty space. She whipped around to see Yuffie walking towards the beast as it slowly began to stand again. Its three heads screaming at her as she readied her Conformer. She held a glowing piece of materia in her hand, eyes closed in a silent prayer. Cloud revved his engine and went roaring passed Yuffie, who didn't so much as flinch. Red came behind him, his headdress glowing. Cait Sith seated on his back, megaphone in hand. Tifa came to stand by Yuffie, fists clenched. Barret stood beside Tifa, aiming his gun arm at the creature.

"You ready fer this, brat?" Cid said, chewing on a toothpick, his Venus Gospel resting across his shoulders.

"Ready as I'll ever be…" Yuffie clutched the orb tighter to her chest. "…mother." Her voice came out a soft whisper. The orb itself shimmered in response.

"Ok, lets kick big uglies ass…" Tifa grinned at the two standing on either side of her.

"Alright, let's get this shit taken care of!" Barret laughed with them. Cloud had begun to hack away at the creature before them seconds later, Tifa charging out to him, Yuffie and Cid following suit. Barret fired a blast from his arm, lighting the monster up one side and down the other. Vincent also fired a few rounds from death penalty, walking with a sort of tragic grace toward the massively deformed dragon head.

* * *

Yuffie glared at the thing, every attack seemed to do less and less damage. They had been fighting hard for the last hour and each wound would heal itself. It seemed tireless. 

She launched her weapon at the monster. The Conformer flew through the air with deadly accuracy. The sounds of flesh tearing and an angry scream were soon muted out by the sound of gunfire. Another angry roar filled the night. It lashed out, striking Vincent and knocking him back a few feet. Glaring as he stood, Vincent holstered Death Penalty and seemingly out of nowhere produced Cerberus.

"Aw, hell, it's regenerating again! Shit!" Cid cursed loudly as he watched the three foot gash Yuffie's Conformer left seal itself shut.

"Well, now what!?" Tifa panted. "We can't keep up this pace forever." She glanced to Cloud as he landed another attack and glared back at the beast as it healed the new wound. Yuffie landed another attack, this one taking out the eye of one of the great beast's heads. The eye did not regenerate, much to everyone's slight amusement. "Nice shot!" Tifa called out as Yuffie landed near Vincent. Her face was blank.

"I didn't know dragons regenerated…" She spoke softly.

"It's not a dragon." Red's voice coming out a low growl.

The beast was in fact not a dragon. "It's a chimera…enhanced to some degree. We are wearing it down, the regeneration isn't as effective." Red glowered at the beast. "The eye isn't healing itself." Its three heads were roaring in unison. There was a black, demonic goat like head on the far left. Next to it was a lions head. There was a large stream of black blood flowing freely from one eye where Yuffie's Conformer had last landed. The green, slavering dragons head was the one causing the most trouble. Acid dripped from its massive jaws, and it kept regenerating along with the rest of its body. The massive wings seemed equally invulnerable to attack, healing before each strike could be completed. They stood there, tired and bloodied from the now hour long fight. Barret, cradling his injured normal arm to his chest, Vincent showed no outward signs of injury. There were a few new, large tears in his cloak and clothes. His metal claw held a few gouges as well. Tifa had a rather nasty bruise down her left arm and possibly a broken rib or two. Cid leaned heavily on his Venus Gospel. Blood flowed freely from his nose and he was sporting a black eye. Cloud and Red were winded and bruised up but otherwise not seriously injured. Yuffie was amazingly unharmed. Not a scratch on her. She stood apart from the rest of the group. Her eyes narrowed dangerously at the chimera. _'I wont let them stop me…'_ With a grunt she launched into another attack. _'I am not some pathetic child!' _glaring at each of the beast's heads, she readied another materia. _'I will prove it…' _In a low voice she prepared her attack. "Mother...guide me…"her voice was hardly above a whisper.

She seemed to be in all places at once each strike hitting its mark with the precision only a skilled warrior would have. As she came down to land something was suddenly very wrong. The creature spun and its deadly tail lashed out slicing right threw Yuffie's mid section. She flew a good fifteen feet. Vincent let out a startled yell and leaped out to catch her. She was gasping for air and clutching the large jagged gash running across her stomach. A trail of blood ran from the corner of her mouth down her chin and another across her cheek, disappearing into her hair. Vincent held her close not sure where to start to try and stop the bleeding. Cloud and Tifa at once flew into action attacking with all their collective might. Red suddenly released Cosmo Memory on the beast, while Barret shot a beam of solid green plasma from his gun. With a final blow from Tifa, Cloud and Cid the beast heaved and slumped to the floor.

"Oh, Gods…she's bleeding out." Yuffie could barely make out Reds voice. She suddenly laughed.

"…figures." She whispered and immediately regretting speaking. Vincent placed his good hand over the wound and tried using his cure materia. He could feel the light tingling as the small orb activated, slowing the blood flow from the wound..

"Be still. You shouldn't speak…" Vincent whispered as the wound started closing. Yuffie smiled once more, reaching a bloody hand up to cup his cheek. Her small hand burned his skin, the memory of the night before flooding back to him as her blood soaked fingers traced down his cheek and lips. Her eyes locked onto his before she felt the world fall away. She heard someone whispering her name as her eyes slowly closed.

"…I-I am s-s-sorry…" she couldn't hold onto consciousness any longer, floating away to the dark recesses of her mind.

_So, I hope everyone really enjoyed this. The next chapter is half way finished. Please review, thanks for reading _


	9. Path of Light

_Ok! Thank you sooooooo soooooo much for all the great reviews. I really meant to say that in chapter two, I'm such a jerk for waiting : …sorry for not saying so sooner. XD_

_Ok, the other re-done chapter. Hope this helps close the gaps. Hopefully I can get started on the new chapter soon. Thanks for reading!_

'_Does this mean…you're angry?' Yuffie dug a small hole in the ground with the tip of her foot. Godo glared at her for a moment. Her hands clasped behind her back, head bowed._

'_It was a foolish mistake, a mistake a knowledgeable and skilled ninja would not make. You never, __**never**__ under estimate your enemy. In a true fight there is no room for error.' Godo's voice betrayed the presence he attempted to maintain. 'Yuffie, you could be so seriously injured out there. Why are you doing this? What are you trying to prove?' He got down on one knee, tilting her chin up enough to look at him. Tears welled in her eyes but her determination not to appear weak held them back._

'_I'm not a child anymore. I can fight, I really can. It's not that bad, it was just one Adamantaimai and a weaker one at that.' She stared back, her stubborn nature keeping her from admitting that she really couldn't defeat the massive creature on her own._

'_Yuffie, it nearly killed you. You can't keep running out there one your own, you just aren't ready to-'Yuffie stiffened, an indignant scowl marring her face._

'_I don't always need saving!' She turned and sprinted out of the palace gardens, down the trail and into the deep forest toward her favorite tree. With no great effort she found herself sitting at the top, peering out over the massive expanse of forest. Birds sang happily, oblivious to her anger and resentment. 'I can do this on my own.' She mumbled angrily to a small white stone. 'You had faith in me, why doesn't he?' The tears that had held their ground earlier now flowed freely. 'I wish you were still here…' Yuffie curled up in her make shift hideout, a single picture of her mother clasped delicately between her thumb and fore finger._

'This is one _really_ white room…' Yuffie glanced around from where she now lay. She checked the room for the fourth time. _'Yep, still empty.'_ She leaned back onto her pillow with a sigh. Her chest ached and her mouth was dry. Before she had a chance to pull the events of the last couple days together, a figure appeared in the empty room. She had a white uniform on and a name badge. Jinn. She was about Tifa's height with beautiful blonde hair held back in a braid. It reminded her of Aeris. The woman shared her fondness for pink, her boots, her hair; even her uniform was trimmed, coated, or wrapped up in the color. Her eyes were a faded blue and green, like the shores of Costa Del Sol.

"Ah, you're awake. How are you feeling?" As she spoke Yuffie tried to sit up again and the woman gently pushed her back down. "Oh, no you don't. You shouldn't move just yet." She stood waiting on Yuffie's answer. She rolled her eyes and went back to lying down.

"Dizzy…" she stated flatly. "Where the hell am I?" The words came out harsher than she'd meant, but she made no motion to apologize.

"You're safe. This is the finest hospital in Wutai. We helped save you, you know." She said smiling sweetly; her tone however, was slightly less kind. Yuffie suddenly felt very uncomfortable. "Do you remember what happened?" The woman asked. Yuffie absently brought a hand to her side to trace the long jagged scar. She hissed in pain as her fingers brushed it and withdrew her hand. She shook her head, no.

"Where's…everyone?" She tried hard to sit up again only to be gently pressed back down by the now very annoying nurse. "Let me up, I need to find them. We have a mission…" The ache in her side became too much for her and she gave up her struggle with a pained groan.

"They'll be along shortly. You were very seriously hurt, Lady Yuffie. You really need to rest. Don't move a muscle and I'll get them for you." She stared hard at Yuffie, waiting on her for the second time. Yuffie gasped at the formality but again, said nothing.

"Fine," She finally conceded, lying back and closing her eyes. "But I won't stay down long." She warned. A swoosh from the door indicated the woman had left. Yuffie opened one eye to confirm her suspicions. 'What the hell…' She sighed. She closed her eyes and focused on her heart beat. With each beat she visualized the fight again from the moment just before she was struck.

_She moved like the wind. She hit her first mark, threw the shuriken. She jumped and caught it mid jump, readying a second, then a third strike as soon as her fingers made contact with the weapon. If her mother had been able to see her then she'd have been quite proud._

_She launched the fourth strike with deadly accuracy. It was at that moment she paused a second time. She felt it coming before she even really saw it. The barbed tail slicing threw her like a hot knife threw butter. She had paused too long. A simple mistake she shouldn't have made_. '_Foolish, how could I miss the tail?! Of all the juvenile mistakes-'_

Her eyes shot open as a hand gently touched her shoulder, bringing her back to the present. Brilliant blue eyes stared back, laced heavily with concern. _'What a dope.'_ She smiled softly as the face edged away revealing several other sets of eyes staring, all with the same look of concern.

"Smooth moves, kid." Cid's gruff voice broke the silence. "You even had me worried, damn it!" His smile turning to a rather harsh glare, she could only give a soft laugh in reply followed by a whispered apology. Tifa immediately hugged her. Yuffie gasped as hot tears came in contact with her own cheek.

"Oh, Gods, I thought you were going to die! I was so scared…" Tifa whispered the last bit.

"I'm sorry…I, uh, well…" She stammered not knowing what to say. She opted to just stay quiet rather than explain her failure. As soon as she got out of this damn white room she'd train harder. She must be losing her edge, practice will fix that. After all, she'd only been saving kittens, not fighting chimeras and saving the world like she used to. "I promise I'll start wor-" she broke off with a hiss of pain. She grabbed at her side as white hot pain spread suddenly from the wound. Her vision became blurry as her back arched of its own volition.

"Yuffie, What's wrong?!" Tifa grabbed the young girl by her shoulders trying to somehow ease her obvious pain. At once Cloud was by her side trying to steady her body. Yuffie let out a gut wrenching cry. Barret ran to the door and yelled for a nurse. The woman came running in with a needle and two orderlies. She jammed the needle into Yuffie's forearm, carefully injecting a clear liquid that slowed the girls thrashing. As Cloud backed away he saw the wound. It was black and yellow and the skin was beginning to rot where the initial laceration had been.

"What the hell is that?!" He all but yelled. Tifa looked over and immediately covered her mouth. "Why is it so infected? Vincent had closed the wound before we brought her here! What the fuck is that?!" He was looming angrily over the frail looking nurse.

"It is poisoned…" She spoke softly. "The venom from the creature's tail has caused a serious infection. There were several barbs that had been sealed in the wound when your friend cured her. It has caused a slight problem with her body's ability to recover. We are doing everything we can, but this may take some time to resolve." She eyed Cid and Cloud warily.

"Will she live?" Vincent whispered from somewhere behind Cloud. He carefully made his way to her side, Tifa shifted to let him by. He gently brushed a wayward lock of hair out of Yuffie's eyes. Her breathing was labored and her skin was pale, coated with perspiration.

"I believe so, she _was_ threatening me earlier…" The nurse spoke just as quietly, a hint of a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. Yuffie groaned, moving her head back and forth. "She is very weak, still. Curing the wound to slow the bleeding was the best course of action; it was very difficult for us as well to spot the tiny barbs that were spreading the toxin, so it was no surprise you did as well."

"Barbs?" Vincent didn't lift his gaze from the girl. He carefully held her small hand in his armored one.

"Hn…so far we've found seven. They were sealed in when you cured her…it was a simple fix. Now we're treating the poison. The skin discoloration should dissipate in the next twelve to eighteen hours." The little nurse gave a quick nod, her blonde braid swishing slightly with the motion.

"Yuffie…weak? Hardly seems like her." Tifa smiled at the girl, her hands still resting on Yuffie's shoulder. "Come on, kid needs her sleep." She whispered to the room as Yuffie groaned again.

"We will be sure to keep you well informed." The nurse said, gesturing toward the door. "She's really in no state for visitors. Don't worry, Lord Godo has his own personal guards as well as Nanaki stationed to watch the door." She tried to reassure everyone's obvious concern for the girls' safety. Red nodded in agreement as everyone else made to leave. Vincent had offered, but knew he was in no condition to watch the girl.

'_**And rightly so, we have much work to do.'**_ Chaos growled. _**'Say your farewell and lets go…Time is against us this night.'**_ Vincent had sensed it before, something was about to happen. The monster had only died after its initial goal had been fulfilled.

"Vincent, come on. We have to go now. There's nothing we can-"he glared at Tifa, anger dissipating as he stared down at Yuffie's pained face while she lay helpless before him.

"I was…harsh, with her before." He interrupted, "I should have known better..."he shook his head, black hair fanning out around Yuffie's face. "I was not meant to have you after all…"he brushed her ear with his lips, his words a whisper only she would have heard. She stirred, whispering something that sounded like his name and mother.

"Hey man, this ain't your damn fault, so don't go tryin' to take all the fu…credit" Cid corrected himself quickly, speaking in a tone only ever heard by Sherra or Yuffie. "She knew what she was doing. She's a ninja, and a member of Avalanche, remember?" He smiled at the thought. Vincent didn't appear amused or anymore relieved. Tifa walked over to him and carefully reached out to him.

"Its okay, Vincent, she's probably forgotten about whatever you said. She _adores_ you." Tifa spoke just loud enough for him to hear. "You're her personal hero." He looked up at this.

"A hero would not have been so cruel." He looked back down to her. "I insulted her by misjudging her. She is delicate…I am not." He looked again to Tifa, his eyes held no emotion she could discern. Nothing, that is, but the regret that endlessly haunted him.

"You, Vincent, can't hurt her." With that Tifa grabbed him by the elbow and gently tugged him to his feet. "Come. We'll check on her tomorrow." He finally gave in and went with her. She gave his arm a gentle squeeze before walking to Cloud.

'_I failed to protect her. Some hero…' _ He could hardly figure how he, of all people, could be the little ninja's hero. He'd figured it was Cloud, the way she always hang on his every word. But then again, she did fight alongside him threw the whole Omega crisis. She was there when he'd been attacked in Nibelheim, saved his life even. He'd have to wait and see when she was well if she did in fact see him that way. '_If she wakes up.' _ He sighed inwardly. _**'You are melancholic and morose…your pathetic simpering over that princess is getting a bit old.'**_The image of her being nearly sliced in two came flooding back to him. He squeezed his eyes shut in an effort to block out the horrible sight. He'd been so careless, he was right there. He could have blocked the attack, warned her sooner…stopped her. _**'You will never be free of guilt; you drag it around like that blonde heaves the dead Cetra's memory.'**_

Tifa noticed Vincent walking slowly behind, lost in thought. She felt very sorry for him, but wisely said nothing further to him. He was one to deal with his own demons, literally. She smiled to herself at that last thought. _'He'll be fine. So will she, she's a ninja after all. Can't get rid of her that easy…right?' _Tifa desperately hoped she'd pull through. She just had to. "Please, don't let her go." Tifa whispered to herself. _'Aeris, please help her.' _She hoped against all hope that somehow her prayer would reach her. If anyone or anything could help it'd be her. She watched as Vincent turned and headed the opposite direction of the Pagoda. _'Don't dwell, Vincent. Poor guy.' _Tifa sighed as he disappeared into the shadows.

'_Where do we start? Is the creature's body still being held in the laboratory?'_ Chaos gave a grunt in the affirmative. _'Then let us start there.' _He watched everyone make their way to the Pagoda, greeted warmly by the Lord himself. Yuffie's would be husband standing beside him.

He had known all along about the customs of Wutai. The marriage was arranged, Yuffie left Wutai at the mention of the deed. Her father decided for once, in his long years, to forgo the ceremonial rights and all that it entailed, and allowed her to remain free of the title. However, she would have difficulty bypassing many of the laws to become Empress. She had returned, she remained unwed and devoutly against taking Lou Ryuugu-san, the man at Godo's side, as her husband. She wanted to have what everyone else had…freedom. The freedom to choose, and to fail...she wanted the freedom to let her heart make the decision, not some ceremonial tribunal that chose based on a bowl of soup, a star, and a baby born the same day. Her father hated her stubborn nature, but for now he was simply glad she was alive. He had thanked Vincent countless times, offering him wealth, land, and as much gratitude as he could muster. He had extended such graces that Vincent felt supremely ashamed for taking his daughters innocence. Here was her father, telling Vincent what a noble and just man he'd been to go and find her…here was Vincent, pleasuring her in ways no one else could ever know. Ashamed was just the beginning.

'_**Move!'**_ Chaos thrashed madly behind Vincent's dead crimson eyes. He clawed at the wall with his golden claw, his good arm clutching the side of his head in agony. _'Gods, I'm moving…'_ If he could slap Aeris…right now he'd really consider it. _**'You know…she never forced you. It was an arrangement made before you had actually been considered.'**_ The demon responded to the hateful thought process toward the young flower girl. _'What do you mean it was pre-arranged?' _Vincent suddenly took in his surroundings, the forest. He was blindly running to the laboratory where the chimera's body was being held for observation and testing. _**'Originally they wanted the girl…that weak, insignificant girl. However, our pre-existing relationship proved to be the better match.'**_Vincent faltered. _'Who? You mean Lucrecia?! That's impossible…she is trapped in the life stream.' _Chaos thrashed again, tearing at the edges of Vincent's sanity. _**'Not that girl…'**_Vincent felt the air rush out of his lungs, fire pulsating all the way to his core. Raw, unbridled hatred spread through him. Aeris had dared to consider pushing this demon on _her_. _'Yuffie…that is why that clone wants her.' _Chaos roared as Vincent managed to lock the demon out of his emotions and memories momentarily. _'Why…? That would destroy Yuffie.' _The demon hesitated to respond, choosing to make Vincent sweat it out instead. _**'Wrong again…the girl, the ninja you so enjoyed, she is capable of destruction beyond anything she should be physically capable of. She is…unique. Why do you think she could sense me before anyone else? You don't think your bond with her is **_**that**_** strong…do you?' **_Vincent thought for a moment, recalling the very second he knew Yuffie had been aware of Chaos.

_She flew down the hall, taking the stairs nearly a flight at a time. She didn't speak, just threw her body at Vincent, knocking them both to the ground. She sobbed brokenly into his chest, begging for him to forgive her. Him forgive her, as if she'd been the one in the wrong…the whole idea was preposterous, till now that is_. _Never had he felt such relief and guilt in one wonderful moment. It had felt good, in an odd sort of way, to know someone had been able to share his pain. But it seemed to haunt him, this feeling for her. She would grow old and he might never die. What happiness could she find in that? Or him for that matter, time passes so quickly for him. A lifetime gone in what felt like nothing more than the blink of an eye. His resentment for Lucrecia grew, as did his regret for feeling so poorly toward her._

'_You are here to protect Yuffie, right? I thought that was what this whole catastrophe was about.' _ Vincent managed to find his way into the laboratory with ease. The locks seemed to give all too eagerly at his manipulations. _**'Don't panic, I'm helping you. We don't have time for a second rate lock pick. The beast will wake soon if you do not finish the job.' **_

'_I knew it was too soon for anything to be going as planned.'_ Vincent rolled his eyes.

'_**When the creature dies fully the ninja will be able to fight the venom. The whole body regenerates…even when a piece is separated. You, idiot, managed to heal seven pieces of it inside her.'**_ Chaos gurgled and snarled, his voice thick with contempt.

'_That is why the wound is still festering…'_the lights were dim in the building, no guards stationed anywhere near the body. Probably Cloud's doing. They needed access to the body and Godo would probably be uncomfortable with them poking around alone. Cloud wasn't above a little manipulating of his own. Though the two men had very little in common, cunning was something they were both surprisingly good at being.

'_**You're a quick one…come on, hurry…the body is this way.' **_He felt the demon pulling him down the many halls and empty rooms to the main examination room. The corpse took up six of the stretchers lined up three across and two up. It smelled of decay and death. Its black blood caused the protective seal covering the floor to bubble up, revealing cracked cement. The metal was melting away wherever the wounds were exposed. A sort of protection spell had been wisely put on the creature itself. At least not everything would be destroyed by its slowly disintegrating body. The core of the beast, an organ trying to pass as a heart, still managed a rather healthy glow. _**'Take that, you can use it later.' **_Vincent didn't question the demon. He used his gauntlet arm to reach in and take the orb. No sooner had his hand left the body cavity did the rest of the creature melt away. _**'The solid ball of Mako keeps them alive somehow.'**_

'_Them?' _Vincent did question him this time. _'Where are the others?' _They made their way back outside and on toward the pagoda.

'_**They are far from here. Two…one much like this one and one much stronger. We-'**_ A silver bell rang behind him, a white light surrounded him. He was almost rendered unconscious by the sent of lilies.

'_Vincent…Vincent…'_the soft voice of Aeris filled him with relief.

'_What must I do…?'_ No hello, no motion to turn. He knew she was standing behind him, hands folded together.

'_The tide of fate is changing for you, old friend. There is much to do and yet so little time. They are hunting for her with all their might. Very soon now, they will find her. You must get her to the safety of the Temple. Chaos knows the way…be strong, dear Vincent. You have only a little longer to endure…follow her light.'_ She was gone before he could finish comprehending what she was saying.

'_She does not speak of the Temple of the Ancients. Where must I go?'_ Vincent let the orb roll around in his palm.

'_**Follow the path of light…' **_Vincent knew the demon well enough to know he was not normally all that cryptic. _**'The path of light leads to darkness…that is all I know. I can guide you to the path, after that your guess is as good as mine.'**_ Vincent raised an eyebrow. _'You know that makes very little sense…What path of light should I follow?'_ He felt it, and unstoppable urge to move. He was walking…now running. He was running too fast to allow himself time to breathe. His lungs ached for much needed oxygen…Chaos had taken over.

'_**Look up…'**_

_Hope everyone likes this chapter. Sorry about the cliffhangers bein' all back to back. I really like this chapter, well…lemme know what you think. Thank you for reading XD (ps. Higurashi no naku ni koro is one creepy ass anime. Check it out on need therapy.)_


	10. Falling to Darkness

_Ak! I have received my first flame…:cries: Oh well. I went back and read through the story and decided…maybe they were right…or maybe not. I'm not a pro or anything like that. But, thank you for the great reviews so far! (Especially Kimmae, glad you like the story so far.)_

_So…no, I don't own anyone or anything in this story. I don't even own the 'Silver River.' Bummer…_

* * *

Vincent stood silently watching the night sky, for the first time in the last forty some odd years he was stunned by its beauty. He had never actually seen the 'Silver River' but he had seen pictures and read about it. It was a milky white trail of stars, a rare piece of the galaxy that was only visible every decade or so. He'd slept through three and prior to that he'd had no time for star gazing. 

The moon was full, illuminating the forest with an eerie glow. The sounds of singing and a flash of color in the sky caught his attention. There was a celebration in honor of the anomaly. Lanterns of all shapes, sizes and colors lined the streets, hanging from trees or strung from roof top to roof top. A parade made its way down the colorful streets, confetti and sakura petals floating threw the air. The star of the parade was a dragon held up by at least eight men. They moved gracefully beneath the heavy costume, giving the appearance the dragon was actually gliding across the ground. Children surrounded it, effortlessly executing various hand-to-hand katas followed by both front and back flips. It looked so much more like dancing than any style of fighting. This was one of the very last celebrations to stand up to the tourists and the invasion of Shin Ra.

'_Yuffie would love to see this.'_ Vincent noted, making his way to the palace. **_'The river is your key to the Temple.'_** Chaos' voice reverberated in the back of Vincent's mind. He glanced back up to the sky, the full moon making it all the more enchanting. **_'We will have to hurry…she will be awake soon.'_** Vincent began to pick up the pace, running to the palace. He managed to startle the guards when he slipped out of the shadows at the palace entrance.

"G-Good evening Mr. Valentine," One of the guards managed. The other mumbled something in Wutanese. Vincent understood what he said, but decided against saying anything.

'**_Ha, still a monster after all you've done.' _**Chaos almost laughed at Vincent's injured feelings.

'_They aren't far from the truth, Chaos…'_ Vincent took up the melancholy voice and stoic look in an effort to mask his slightly wounded feelings.

'**_You find any and every reason you can to feel sorry for yourself. You should die if you are truly this useless. I should have gone to the girl…at least we would have had some… fun.'_** Chaos growled out, causing Vincent to falter in his step, clutching his head in an attempt to dull pain the demon caused. He could taste something bitter and almost metallic in the back of his throat. Chaos roared in laughter, retreating as suddenly as he'd brought the attack on.

"Vincent! Gods, are you alright?!" Tifa's worried voice never sounded so wonderful. He looked up to her golden brown eyes, still unable to focus completely. She pulled a piece of cloth out of her pocket and began to dab at his face. He couldn't hide the shock he felt as she withdrew the cloth, now stained with his blood. "What the hell happened to you…?" She whispered, helping him to stand.

"I will be fine. Where's Cloud? I need to speak with him." Vincent stood, allowing her to help him. He offered a small smile in thanks for her help.

"He's out in the garden speaking with Lord Godo. Yuffie has been brought back to the palace, incase you wanted to know. They said that the wound healed suddenly, she has a scar, but the infection is completely gone." She smiled as she spoke. "Is it done…?" she asked hesitantly. He nodded, still a bit distracted by the pain and the horrible laughter filling his mind. Vincent silently wished he could shoot the demon. **_'All you'd have to do is level Cerberus right at your temple and pull the trigger…it's not that hard...I can help you if you'd let me.'_** He could feel Chaos grinning at his own joke._ 'What's happening to you…?' _Vincent vaguely wondered if this had to do with the time constraint they suddenly found themselves under.

'**_It is not that and you know it…You knew what I was when you took me in. We may have saved the planet together, that does not mean I enjoy your company. You bore me…' _**Chaos spoke with an air of finality. _'So that's it. You are simply bored. Do not tamper with me, demon. I can find ways to return the favor.' _Vincent threatened. The demon said nothing, knowing all too well Vincent was very much a man of his word.

"Thank you Tifa…" He spoke after a moment, realizing he'd been staring off into space again, then turned and made his way toward the garden. Tifa watched walk away before she continued to Yuffie's room to check on her.

* * *

Godo and Cloud stood facing one another, speaking in hushed tones Vincent could hear as loudly as if he were standing there with them. They spoke of him, of him and his devotion to Yuffie. The man who stood in the shadow of Lord Godo made no motion to hide his wounded pride. Vincent had known Yuffie; he could only imagine what Ryuugu was going through. He'd been promised a life with her only to have it taken away by the planet itself. What Vincent hadn't known was that she had originally been set to marry Lou Ryuugu the day after Cloud, Aeris and Tifa found her near Wutai. Godo had been almost excited that Yuffie would be following in her mothers daring footsteps. 

He had postponed the wedding due to extenuating circumstances. Once she returned after everything that happened, she claimed she needed time to grieve the loss of Aeris before she could commit to anyone or anything bigger than a simple speech when she'd returned. She'd become slightly more mature and very secretive of her feelings. Saving the planet had been so trying on her especially, she was young, a child at the time. Then, two years later, when all the children disappeared she returned to Edge to fight a second time. Seeing him, Vincent, only made it all the worse for her. She had missed him most of all. Instead of leaving for Wutai she stayed with Reeve and joined the WRO. It wasn't long till she found him again. This time he was nearly killed by a slightly deranged woman in the Shin Ra mansion. She'd stayed with him ever since, fighting always at his side.

'_I'm so blind to everything.' _Vincent cursed himself. How could he have not noticed all this time she felt for him? He'd felt it when she came to see him after Chaos had been removed and he'd returned home with Shelke. She'd been so worried she'd sent Shelke after him on her Chocobo. She never let anyone, not even Cloud, borrow that bird. Its black feathers tinged with a golden yellow, eyes like coal. She loved that bird with all her little heart. She had raised it from an egg that had been abandoned in the plains of Nibelheim. Vincent was purposely blind to it the sentiment in naming the chocobo. She had named it Valentine and made a deep red bridle for it, color matching Vincent's cloak.

'**_Every single time you pause to reminisce we lose time…Is there anyway I can impress upon you the dire need for you to discontinue this current course of thought? You are wasting her time…'_** Chaos had gone back to sounding calm and yet still quite angry. Vincent sighed in frustration and apology. _'Alright, I'll get the others.'_

"Cloud, I can't seem to thank you enough for returning her to us. I know how difficult she can be, I'm forever indebted to Mr. Valentine, to you all." Godo sighed staring out at the Sakura blossoms that adorned the trees to the rear of the massive garden. Fireworks and singing could be heard from as far down as the town. "They are celebrating the flowing of the 'Silver River,' our last great treasure." Godo sighed sadly. Cloud glance over at him, noticing how weak he now seemed. The Emperor looked weathered. His eyes shadowed with guilt, weariness and laden heavily in sorrow. Cloud knew the worry that plagued him, if his little Yuffie didn't marry it was likely Wutai would go to the next viable ruler. His option of sending Lou Ryuugu to the throne wasn't a bad one; it was a matter of character. What kind of man would Lou Ryuugu prove to be once he was Emperor?

"There are many treasures still left to Wutai…" Vincent spoke softly, his deep voice easily penetrating the sounds of celebration down below. "It is a beautiful celebration." He eyed the sky once again, his mind finding itself wrapped up in Yuffie once more. He needed to see her.

"Vincent…" Cloud looked a little surprised to see him. "Did you get what you needed?" He whispered to Vincent, he nodded once to Cloud. "I shall leave you to enjoy your evening, Lord Godo, Ryuugu-san." Cloud bowed to both men before following Vincent back to the palace.

"Vincent." Godo didn't turn to face him, "I owe you much more than a house in the country or wealth...I would truly be lost without her. She is my only light…" Now he turned, a smile drifting across his frail features. "She would whisper your name in her sleep after she returned, she carried this around with her everywhere saying only that it protected her." He held out a deep red strip of cloth, a single piece of metal adorned it. It was the Cerberus symbol he'd worn for so long, it had come off of his gun so he'd worn the thing around his neck. She'd found it in Edge after the fight with Omega when he'd disappeared. He allowed her to keep it when she tried to give it back the day he came home. So she tied it to a piece of his cloak she'd stolen when they first met. Vincent stared at the make shift charm with a little amusement, she was a better thief than he gave her credit for. It was almost odd to have someone look up to him in such a way. _'How long **has** she felt this for me…?'_ he wondered to himself.

"You owe me nothing, I owe her everything." He nodded to Godo, heading back to the palace with Cloud.

Cloud said nothing as they made their way to Yuffie's room. Vincent hadn't felt like this in a very long time. He wanted to be near her again…but the thought frightened him still.

Two guards and Red stood outside the door, it was cracked open, the light from inside flooding out into the hallway. Vincent could make out Tifa's gentle laugh and Yuffie's mischievous giggle. Both women looking up as soon as the door was pulled open completely. Tifa sat at the edge of Yuffies grand, four poster bed. They had been playing cards and drinking green tea.

Yuffie had a rather large room. Two full size, walk-in closets, two sets of French doors that opened out to a balcony. The curtains were the same eggshell white that her sheets were. Her room was surprisingly clean and bland. It didn't really seem to fit her at all. Except for the books, there were shelves covering the wall opposite her bed. They were filled with books on materia, ancient Wutaian customs and ceremonies, and a few on the planets history.

"Hey, Vincent, well that's my cue. Cloud and I are going to try and save Reno from Cid." Tifa giggled with Yuffie.

"He really flew the airship? I'm surprised there's anything left of Reno to save…" Yuffie spoke quietly, her voice still a little shaky. "Well good luck, I'm sure ol' Vinnie here can keep me safe while you guys go do your hero thing." She said, waving them off with her hand. Vincent winced a little at the use of 'Vinnie.'

Cloud turned to Vincent before he left. Their eyes met and Vincent nodded in some sort of secret understanding.

"I will be along shortly…" Vincent's deep voice reverberated off the walls. "I would appreciate a moment alone with Yuffie." Cloud nodded and turned to follow Tifa out of the room. The door shut behind them, leaving Vincent and Yuffie alone for the first time since their night together on their way here. She was nervous, shifting under the sheets.

"Are you alright?" She stared at her hands as if she just discovered she had them.

"…yes." He couldn't think of a single thing he could say or do that would make this any less awkward. "Are you?"

"Mmm…" she nodded. "Um…Vincent? Can we talk…about the other day?" She finally glanced up at him. "Do you still regret it?" She bit her lip, shifted further into the bed, her hands gripping the sheets like a vice.

"I didn't regret it to begin with." He slowly made his way toward the head of her bed. Her eyes shot up as he sat down beside her.

* * *

The thunder was deafening, the oceans once blue waters were now black and angry. He stood, his broken body slowly repairing the damage the small woman had inflicted upon it. A malicious grin spread across his features, the ocean threatened to take him down into its icy depths. He stood on the water like a prophet of destruction. On his wrist a bracelet glittered. It was adorned with many flickering lights. One light began to glow brighter than the others. It gave one last vein attempt to stay lit before it flickered and went out. _'Chimera is dead…time for a new pet.'_ He idly traced a finger over another light dotting the bracelet. _'What do we do…what do we do?'_ he repeated the thought over and over, waiting for an answer. The ocean roared furiously, the storm eagerly trying to reach Wutai. _'You may go… I want the girl as alive as you can get her…'_ With that he stepped down, one foot sinking into the black abyss of the violent waters. With one final grin toward the Island, he allowed himself to fall into the waters, disappearing as if he'd never been there. The storm itself began to pick up speed and size, moving toward Wutai. Lightning ripped through the heavens followed by earth shattering thunder. Fishing boats were torn apart by the waves as they closed in on Wutai's shores. The lightning kissed the ocean waters again, killing all matter of sea life as they went. Slowly the waves built themselves into a furious rage, rising out of the water and crashing closer to the beautiful shores of Wutai. In a matter of seconds the storm connected, waves began crashing all the way toward the first village at the base of the Da Chao cliffs. The thunder rumbling above lessened as bolt after bolt of lightning began to tear through the tiny fishing village…

* * *

There was no warning as storm clouds, black and laden with hatred, blotted out the moon. Yuffie stared in horror out the window as dozens of bolts simultaneously shot down into the parade below, quickly laying waste to the town. 

'…**_Take the girl to the others. You can not fight with her near you.'_** For once Vincent agreed whole heartedly with the demon. As if reading his mind, Red burst through the door.

"Vincent, we have to leave the palace at once! Quickly!" Red's voice held an edge of panic neither Yuffie nor Vincent had ever heard. He was usually so level headed, even in times of great danger. Vincent turned and carefully swept Yuffie out of the bed.

'**_Fool, you have no time for this! Let the beast take her. RELEASE ME!'_** Vincent doubled over in pain, nearly dropping Yuffie. "Nanaki, please take her from me…" His voice came out a deep growl. Red nodded and carefully came to help Yuffie stand.

"Vincent, what are you doing?!" She yelled angrily. "You better not try and go fight that monster by yourself!" She was furious, he remained silent, save for the snarling and gurgling of Chaos trying to break free.

"Yu-ffie…Go, hurry." He tried to speak quickly, gasping for air and control. "GO!" He roared at her. She scampered back a few feet and her legs gave out.

"I can't walk…"she nearly cried, terrified by the image of Vincent fighting the inevitable change of form. Red came up beside her, urging her to climb onto his back.

"I can carry you to them. Really Yuffie we must hurry!" He nearly tore her shirt as he pulled her away further from Vincent. She yanked free and stumbled into him. She managed to pull Death Penalty free.

"I'm taking this, if you want it back you have to beat that big nasty outside. I'll leave you Cerberus…" Her voice wavered, trying to hide her fear of both Chaos and the horrific storm outside. "Chaos better bring you back…or so help me, Leviathan." She threatened. Chaos laughed, golden eyes taking in the image of her leveling Death Penalty at him in some sort of threat.

The sound of leather and flesh tearing could still be heard as Red pounded down the hallway. A final roar of pain from Vincent followed by the sound of a window breaking signified Chaos's manifestation. Yuffie held the heavy weapon firmly to her chest. He'd come back, one way or another…he'd come back for his gun. Red came to a sudden halt, nearly sending Yuffie over his shoulders. Cloud appeared from around a corner, wrapping a strong arm around her waist he easily pulled her to her feet. She held the gun in her free hand, the sound of metal clanking on metal caused her to glance back at the gun. A familiar strip of red cloth hung from it, the metal Cerberus symbol still tied to it. _'How in the nine hells did he find that?'_ She smiled affectionately at the gun.

"Cid, are you ready to go?!" Cloud yelled over the phone to the pilot. The engines of the Sierra roared to life again. Reno came flying around the corner, Yuffie's father over his shoulder, Ryuugu right behind him.

"Hurry the fuck up! It's tearing the palace apart!" Reno franticly handed Yuffie's father to Barret and turned running back. "I lost Rude; I have to go back for him!" His face was pale, freckled with dirt or debris. The lights in the palace had gone out shortly after Red broke down Yuffies door so it was hard to tell. The gun in her hand began to glow. She gave it a quick glance, noticing it was actually one of the materia.

"Phoenix…"her eyes met Reno's as the name left her lips. He grabbed the shimmering orb with lightning reflexes, attaching it to a slot on his wrist guard and bolted back down the hallway. Flames engulfed him as he ran, Red bounding after him. The summon fully activated as they came to a stop outside Yuffies door. Rude lay beneath rubble and various beams from the ceiling. Red and Reno managed to pull him free as the fire surrounding Reno engulfed Rude as well.

"Hey! Hurry-"the words died in Tifa's throat as she watched the Phoenix summon take form and revive Rude. She'd only seen it once before years ago when Aeris died. Her materia had shattered trying to activate and save her…It was beautiful, the fire began to take the shape of an enormous bird, its wings wrapping around Reno and Rude, the fire scorching the floor and debris around them and not so much as singeing their clothes. As quickly as it came it vanished, the materia going dull once more. "Hu-hurry! We're ready to take off…" Tifa and Red did their best to help a still weak Rude make his way down the hall.

Once on the airship Cid began shouting orders out to his crew, the Sierra rocketed forward once again, racing away from the storm. The turbulence making Yuffie incredibly nauseous. She clung for dear life to Cloud's shoulder.

"Where the fuck is Vincent?" Cid roared angrily, noticing Yuffie holding his gun. "Why the hell do you have his fucking gun!? Ain't he going to fuckin' need that?" He glared at Yuffie, demanding an answer to at least one of the three questions.

"Don't worry about him… We have to get out of here now!" Cloud yelled as he helped Reno settle Rude and Yuffie into chairs. "It's Vincent, he'll live." He stood between Red and Cid at the helm.

"Holy…fuck…" Cid's toothpick fell from its previous perch on his lip as his mouth dropped open. The sky appeared to split in two, the deep insides of the storm clouds were red and lightning, or something close to it, was tearing the hillside apart. It appeared that the winds were blowing toward the tear in the sky, sucking up homes and livestock. Something big was alive in those clouds, and it was destroying the Island of Wutai. He could make out people jumping off the cliffs to avoid the fate of being electrocuted or sucked into the vortex above them. Cid could also see Chaos trying to tear apart the clouds, but having little or no success. He'd fired Cerberus at it to no avail. The thing was engulfing the island in its furry.

Yuffie sobbed to herself as she watched her once beautiful home burning in a heap beneath the demonic sky. Lou came to stand by her side. She clutched the gun closer to her chest as Tifa placed a reassuring hand on her. Lou simply resigned himself to standing comfortingly next to the young woman. _'What could it possibly want from me?' _Her heart was breaking. All those people…dead. Her entire country was dead.

The Sierra flew through the sky at incredible speeds, managing to escape the storms grasp for the moment. They followed the 'Silver River' just as Cloud had said they should. Cid knew it'd follow them, whatever had summoned the storm anyway, and it would definitely try and kill them again...

_Ooook! As always, I love you guys :) and I really hope you like this chapter. I had to shorten it a little, I think I got kind of carried away heh. So, my request is…if you like this chapter let me know, if not flames are of course welcome too…I guess. :frowns: Anyways, sorry it took so long ;) enjoy!_


	11. Despair

_A/N: I'm having a hell of a time getting this site to upload anything correctly. So…I'm trying to break the chapters down for it…its going to take me a little while to really update…:kicks computer: I had to put everything into some crappy text format and go back and redo everything...blah!...but, enjoy this chapter, I worked extra hard on it ha ha ;)  
_

It was quiet…too quiet for a certain ninja, formerly the heiress of an entire nation, sitting at the rear of the Sherra. The sobs had subsided but the tears still flowed steadily down her cheeks. She stayed awake, waiting for Vincent to return. The horizon behind them was blood red. There had been a flash of light at one point and now the sky seemed to be sharing in the suffering Yuffie felt. The crimson tainted the sky over what was left of Wutai, reminding her that her people had all died. _'Jinn…the children in the temple…everyone is dead.'_ She lowered her head and closed her eyes, trying to regain her composure.

She hadn't even heard the rustle of the familiar cloak, didn't notice the foot steps approaching. Carefully, he let the crimson fabric cover her. She nearly fell over trying to turn to him. He caught her and settled himself behind her. She placed both hands on his thighs and sighed. "I'm glad you made it back…"

"Didn't have much of a choice now did I, _empress_…' His voice was thick and gritty, not the smooth tenor it normally had been.

"Chaos…?" She whispered, as if saying it out loud would upset him. She felt the body shift behind her.

"Indeed…Vincent will return to you shortly. He is too…weak…to do so now." There was an edge of humor and annoyance in his voice. She began to pull away but the demon tightened its grip. "I will do no harm." The demons voice grated behind her.

"What happened out there…? Is everyone really dead?" Her voice was shaky and weak.

"Vengeance will be paid, little one." She could feel the heat and rage radiating off his body as he spoke. They sat silently for a moment, glaring out at the sky. Suddenly Yuffie slammed her fist into the ground.

"I will kill him-I will kill them all! All those who have taken my people from me, _I will kill them!_" She screamed, rage consuming her like fire. She pounded her fist into the floor again, cracking her knuckles on the hard surface. She wailed in pain and fury. "Why is this happening? Why are they all dead? WHY?!" She cradled her hand to her chest.

He shifted behind her. Her eyes remained focused on the burning heavens. Carefully he took her injured hand in his. "Be silent, Yuffie…be still." Vincent's voice whispered behind her. She felt herself melting into his embrace. She could practically feel retreating into Vincent's subconscious once again.

**_'I have never known sorrow…'_**he stated simply, in a rare, and slightly disturbing, display of compassion. _**'I wonder if it feels as badly as it tastes…'**_ Vincent merely nodded. He was all too familiar with the emotion…

"Vincent…I'm sorry…"Yuffie's voice cracked as she broke down into uncontrollable sobs once again. The sound of her screaming had brought Tifa out of her room. She took a seat against the railing opposite the pair. Vincent closed his eyes and held her closer. Tifa leaned forward and wrapped her arms around the pair.

"My poor Yuffie…" She whispered into the younger girls' hair. Cloud emerged a moment later taking a seat next to Tifa once she pulled away. Cid and Barret stood on opposite ends sides of Yuffie. Cid knelt beside her, glancing quickly to Vincent, before taking a seat next to them. He held her hand firmly in his. Red, followed by Reno and Rude, also came to comfort the ninja. Godo and Lou were still in their room.

Yuffie took another deep breath and tried to pull herself together. She leaned heavily against Vincent, her small frame shuddering uncontrollably.

"Were there any survivors?" Cloud and Reno asked in unison. Vincent shook his head, no. Yuffie sucked in a breath, holding tighter to Vincent's cloak.

"At least not from where I was…" He tried to sound hopeful. "Shortly after you managed to get away the demon was called away." Vincent lifted his gaze toward the sky. "It is far stronger than Chaos; we alone could not inflict any damage."

"Is it pursuing us?" Cloud closed his eyes, leaning his head back against the railing.

"I do not believe so. Once it had completed its task it began to dissipate." Vincent replied.

"Is there a chance we can beat it together?" Tifa asked, trying to sound hopeful.

"I do not know…" Yuffie sighed into his chest. Vincent tightened his grip slightly.

"Leviathan has betrayed me, betrayed us all. Our God has forsaken us…" a bitter laugh came from Yuffie, her gray eyes glittering with a vengeful spark none of the others had ever seen. "I will kill him…I will kill whoever stands in my way, I will avenge my fallen country!"

"Hey…Yuffie…" Tifa whispered, reaching out again to the younger woman. Yuffie flinched and burrowed deeper into Vincent's cloak. "Vincent…maybe you should take her to her room…I think she needs time alone." Tifa looked briefly hurt at Yuffie's actions but said nothing of it. Vincent nodded. He stood and, in one fluid motion, took Yuffie with him.

* * *

"I've never seen her like this…although; she's never had to face such a tragedy." Tifa spoke softly. "I wish I could see her laugh or tease Cid…or anything." Cloud placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. 

"The worst is yet to come, I'm afraid." Red spoke with grim certainty. "Our true enemies are closer than we'd like to believe."

"Red's right, yo. We can't even defeat the ones right in front of us." Reno sighed and dropped to the floor beside Cid. Cid handed him a cigarette before lighting up one for himself.

"I quit smokin' for that little brat!" Cid began, he cleared his throat "Oh…I meant to tell y'all sooner, guess it fuckin' slipped my mind." He shook his head.

"What is it?" Tifa glanced up, hoping it was at least good news.

"Sherra's pregnant...She'll be popping a brat of our own out soon..." Cid shifted uneasily under the intent stare from Tifa. "I should be with her. Yuffie should be an Empress and this fucking shit shouldn't be goddamned happening!" Cid shook a fist toward the sky. Tifa couldn't help herself and smiled, giving Cid's knee a pat.

"I'm so proud of you…when this all blows over we'll have to celebrate." She whispered. She stood and made her way back to the room she and Cloud were sharing. "I'm going to get some sleep…you guys be careful tonight." She stared at Cloud for a second longer before nodding and slipping into the room.

"So…we know what we have to do, right?" Cloud eyed Cid and Barret.

"Yeah…don't mean I fuckin' like it." Cid growled in response.

"Do you need me to be there...?" Reno took a long drag from the cigarette.

"After we've finished, yes." Cloud gave him a slight grin. "Quit smirking like that, Reeve knew before you did."

"'Bout what time? I gotta call Marlene 'fo she gets to bed…Don't want her to know what I'm doin'." Even Barret's face held a dark expression. Cloud nodded and stood. Rude and Reno exchanged glances and made their way to their rooms. Cid stubbed out the cigarette and tossed it over the railing before heading toward Yuffie's end of the airship. Barret pulled out his phone and dialed.

"You have one hour…then we have to get this over with." Cloud's expression was as grim as Barret's. He nodded in agreement before speaking. "Hey, Marlene! Yeah? I jus' wanted to call and…"

His voice trailed off as Cloud made his way to the room he and Tifa were in. _'One hour…'_ he opened the door, Tifa was asleep in bed. Her hair covered her face slightly; she lay on her side facing Cloud. He sat carefully beside her, moving the hair out of her eyes. She stirred, eyes fluttering open. He stared for a moment, unsmiling. She let a small smile work its way across her face. He leaned down, capturing her lips in a gentle kiss.

"I'm sorry…I have to do this tonight." He rested his forehead against hers. She brought a hand up to cup his cheek.

"It's ok, you have to protect your family. I understand…I just can't be there. Not for...that…"her voice trailed off. "Please…"she opened her eyes, "please be careful."

Cloud nodded, mumbling a promise before kissing her again.

* * *

Vincent slipped into her room and locked the door behind them. He saw Death Penalty lying on her bed, a strange sort of comfort came from knowing she at least had the gun with her even if he wasn't. 

She slid from his arms and stood quietly beside him for a moment. She eyed the gun with a small hint of affection, before casting her gaze back to her feet. She fidgeted, wringing her hands in nervousness.

"I knew you would come back…at least for the gun, I knew you would come back." She continued to stare at the floor, her voice was hollow. Vincent winced at the sight of her. _'She should never look like this…she should never know this kind of hell…'_ Her eyes came up to meet his. Her once beautiful storm gray eyes were now empty and filled with hatred.

"I came back for you…" he sighed, "I needed to see you, make sure you were still safe…" His eyes flashed golden. "We will protect you and to do that…I have to be here." He cupped her cheek gently. "Gods…I sound so…"

"Warm and fuzzy…you don't sound like the old Vincent, that's for sure." Yuffie chuckled lightly. "I'm glad you came back for me…I'm glad Chaos brought you back. He's not all bad I guess." Vincent grimaced as the demon began to laugh.

"No…he's all bad." At Yuffie's slight glare he sighed, "He is doing what he was brought here to do."

"And what would that be? Make Vinnie a man?" He shot her a slightly hurt glance.

"To protect you, he takes it seriously…for once." He turned away from her. She giggled, softly at first. Vincent turned, still a little annoyed. She laughed harder at his expression. "You find this amusing?" he asked coolly.

"Aw…don't go all dark and broody on me! This is really funny and I need funny right now!" She kept laughing as Vincent tried to maintain his stoic expression. He sighed and finally turned to look at her. His breath caught in his throat, tears still ran down her cheeks. Sorrow was prevalent in her dark eyes. Her laughter died on her lips at the look he gave her. Compassion, caring...and something darker. "This isn't like you at all…"she whispered as he wiped the tears away with the back of his gloved knuckles.

She blinked at him a few times, his head tilted to one side as he watched her. Yuffie shifted slightly under his gaze, worrying her bottom lip with her teeth. When he didn't look away she made a move. Her hands shot up around his neck, lips connecting with his. Her hands made quick work of the leather bindings and buckles this time around. The cloak fell to the floor first, followed by the leather shirt. Her lips trailed down his neck, her hands fisting in the white shirt. _**'…think of it as a form of comfort…not everyone wants a pat on the back…'**_ Chaos laughed. Vincent forced himself not to give in.

"Yuffie…we can't-"she captured his lips again.

"Shut the fuck up, Vincent…take off your pants…"her voice was husky, her hands wrapped around his neck now. He pulled back, stunned by the sudden force she was using. **_'This didn't bother you last time…'_** With that Chaos fully retreated into the back of his mind, far enough away that Vincent almost couldn't feel him.

"Yuffie, stop…please. I can't take advantage of you like this…again." Her eyes met his. His were firm in their resolve while hers were smoldering in hatred and desire.

"Who is taking advantage of whom, Vincent?" she made quick work of the buckles holding his pants on. "I want this…" Her demeanor changed suddenly. She leaned up carefully on her tip toes and placed a sweet kiss at the corner of his lips. "Please…take this pain away, even if it's just for a little while. You are the only one who can…"her soft voice momentarily easing the worry and shame that ate away at his dignity. "Please….please, Vincent…" Her small hand slid across his chest, tracing the muscles moving beneath it. Carefully she let her hand move along his side and slide into his pants. His breath hitched as her hand made its way back up towards his stomach.

"…do you realize what you're…asking?" he grunted as her hands went in two directions, one going toward his neck and another sliding below his stomach again. He held her shoulders firmly, trying to keep her from any further exploration.

"Yes, Vincent. Gods, I can't stop this pain..." her voice came out a soft whimper as his hands began to move. He brought a hand to her cheek, running a thumb over the tear stains. His eyes softened, staring at her intently. "I just…please, give me this." He placed a finger over her lips, silencing her.

He bent his head to capture her lips in a soul crushing kiss. He began to carefully explore the already exposed skin of her neck and arms, gently kissing down toward her shoulders. He lifted each hand to kiss the palm and then moved to her wrists and each finger tip. He brought his metal clad hand to her hair, tilting her head so she was forced to look him in the eye. She felt her heart skip a beat as her eyes locked with his. His crimson orbs shinning with passion and desire. He swept her up off her feet, carrying her to the bed. The gun moved toward the foot of the bed as Vincent situated himself against the headboard, Yuffie against his chest. She nestled her head against his neck, sighing softly.

"I will give you what peace I can. Sleep, I will be here until you wake." She sighed again, her small fingers tracing scars just below the surface of the white shirt he wore. Her fingers worked lower until they came in contact with the undone buckles of his leather pants.

"I want…something different." She gave a tug at the leather. "This…" He tilted his head to look at her; her eyes were dark with want and need. She leaned forward, as tentatively as he had done the first time this happened. "…Vincent." His name came out a breathy sigh as his hands wrapped around her waist, pulling her flush against his body. He shifted so she was beneath him, her legs wrapped around his waist. Ever so cautiously he began to kiss his way down to her shoulders again. She brought her hands up to wrap into his hair.

A knock on the door made her stiffen, but she did not release her hold on Vincent. He paused, listening to her breathe as she tried to compose herself; he briefly rested his head against her heart. Slowly, he moved to stand. She grabbed his arms, pulling him back down. She kissed him, her lips burning his. Her hand ran through his dark locks as she crushed his body to hers. Both of his hands moved to hold her firmly against him, the door forgotten for the moment, as he returned the kiss with fervor. A second knock brought their attention back to the door. Slowly, they pulled apart, slightly out of breath. A third knock caused Yuffie to jump slightly, she blushed as Vincent bent to kiss right above her heart.

"Shit…who the hell could be-" she muttered at the fifth annoying knock.

"Lady Kisaragi, I wanted to speak with you. Are you well?" It was Lou Ryuugu. She paled suddenly, stumbling to her knees behind Vincent as soon as he stood. He glanced to her then the door. She jumped up, looking around for anything to cover up with. Vincent, sensing her panic, wrapped his cloak around her. "Y-yes…uh, one moment please." She glared at the door.

"I will stay if you wish." He watched a slow smile light up her face before disappearing again.

"Thank you, I don't want to deal with him alone right now." She whispered back, taking his claw in her hand.

Vincent opened the door to allow Lou in. He eyed Vincent with no small amount of suspicion before coming in completely.

"Lady Kisaragi…if we could speak in-"she held up a hand.

"My guardian will be present at all times." Her face was serious and her eyes held a certain commanding presence Vincent had only witnessed in battle.

"Why was this man chosen?" He made no attempt to hide his anger. "He's not of Wutaian descent or any stronger than the blond swordsman! I am to be your husband, I shall be your guardian and I say this man-"

"ENOUGH!" Yuffie roared back at him "Chaos will not leave my side." Her eyes narrowed dangerously at him "You will _never_ be my husband!" She spat. "You are deceitful and greedy! I would never let something like you rule Wutai."

"That's rich, Empress! You speak of greed and deceit while you allow a demon to protect you!" Lou glared back at her. "Oh, your mother would be proud of you alright! You are pathetic! I will have Wutai, whether or not you choose to join me is entirely up to you…" his eyes returned her anger.

"Who the fuck you think yer talkin' too, Louy boy?" A firm hand gripped his elbow. "Sure doesn't seem like the way you should be addressin' a fucking Empress or a goddamn lady…" Cid's voice was low and cold. Lou didn't fight him; he simply continued to glare at a golden eyed Vincent who was now keeping Yuffie behind him.

"And jus' fo' the record. Vinnie here…he's a Wutaian. His mamma was anyways. Ain't that right, Vince?" Barret stepped in beside Cid. Vincent couldn't muster words to come, he simply nodded in response.

"You want me to toss his bitch ass of the Sierra?" Cid smiled to Yuffie and Vincent. "Or would Chaos like to do the honors?"

"A tempting offer…" came the deep, gritty growl of the demon within Vincent. "I will have to decline for now, however." Chaos stepped closer to Yuffie, further covering her from Lou's stares.

"Pathetic, you've been reduced to baby-sitting. So, how are you going to bring back Wutai? You are a monster…all you are good for is killing!" Lou spat out at the man. His eyes flashed dangerously.

"Insults do not affect demons." He snarled at Lou. "However, they do affect men…" Vincent's voice came out a low whisper; he let his hand rest on Cerberus.

"Pathetic? Vincent? No...He is a man of far greater character than you…" Lord Godo stood in the doorway, a stoic look masking any true emotions. "You have disappointed me…I thought you'd at least try harder to imitate Lou than this. It is a terrible disguise even little Yuffie saw through. I will not sacrifice Wutai to you or your master. You shall not have her!" His face was set in a deep scowl, his voice almost a low growl. Yuffie's eyes widened in shock.

Lou let out a maniacal laugh. Cid jumped away from him, Barret readied his gun arm just in case. "I will take what I please!" He laughed harder. "None of you are a match for me…I will take great pleasure in tearing you all apart. Especially you, little Empress-"

Suddenly everything was going in slow motion. Yuffie dropped the red cloak, leveled the Death Penalty at the creatures head and fired of three rounds in rapid succession. The same glowing white orb from her fight with the chimera was held firmly in one hand. She paused, aimed again and fired. One shot to the gut, one to his chest just below his throat, and one to his head. She lowered the gun. Vincent wrapped his arms around her, trying to calm her as quickly as he could. Cid and Barret stared wide eyed at the girl. The body of whatever had tried to be Lou lay in several pieces, blood and bones splattered all over the door and wall of Yuffies room.

"…Does this mean he's really…really dead?" Yuffie's voice came out a broken sob. Godo nodded to her.

"The guards found his body a week before that storm hit. He had tried to kill me, but Reno here managed to interrupt that." Godo glanced around for the red headed Turk. "He's always been good at that…" he lowered his gaze for a moment, "I am sorry, my dear. I wish I had been able to see through his disguise sooner and I wish I had been able to warn you..." He carefully cupped his daughter's cheek in his hand. "I'm so sorry, my little rose." She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him fiercely, weeping into his robes. Vincent stood quietly behind her, head bowed.

_'Thank you…'_ Vincent groaned as the demon growled back at him, almost rebuking his thanks.

**_'…indeed.' _**Chaos fell back into the furthest reaches of his mind.

"What'd I…holy shit!" Reno nearly jumped out of his skin at the sight of the body parts strewn about Yuffies room. Rude and Cloud leaned around the corner to see what startled Reno and grimaced. "What the hell happened to Lou?"

"We have to hurry the fuck up. That thing has been leading that fuckin' storm or whatever the hell that is, right to us." Cid turned to Reno. "Uh…Lou's dead, man." Reno eyed the corpse.

"See! That was what I thought it was last night…" Reno stared darkly at Godo, who nodded in response. "I told you! I said: "That man isn't right, yo!" and you sat there and told me I'm nuts. What gives, yo?!" Reno slipped back into his usual demeanor. Rude simply shook his head and rolled his eyes.

"We need to contact Reeve and Tseng." He spoke softly. "They will want an update." Cloud held up a hand, mumbled a word of thanks, then turned to Rude.

"I am on the phone with them now…" Clouds voice whispered, hand over the mouth piece of his phone. "Reeve, its Cloud. No, we haven't. Do you have any new information? We…Yuffie killed him. Yes…Reno figured it out. Indeed. Right, we're on our way." Cloud hung up. "Quit gloating…Reeve knew before you did, Godo was under strict orders to play dumb." Cloud couldn't help the smile he had. "But thanks, Reno, for saving him…"

"So…What's going on?" Yuffie spoke up, standing beside Vincent once again.

"Tseng and Elena are on their way to meet us. Reeve was making sure we had dealt with this-"he pointed over his shoulder at the body, "and we now have exact coordinates to the Temple." He walked over to the nightstand by Yuffies bed, and wrote something down. "Sorry, Cid…"

"It fuckin' figures…damn that place!" Cid growled walking out of the room, "And clean that shit up! I don't want that things blood staining my floors…" He trudged off toward the helm.

"Where are we going, Cloud." Vincent asked, his metal hand held firmly in both of Yuffie's small hands.

"…The Northern Crater." He turned and made his way out of the room, turning the opposite way Cid went. He opened the janitor closet down the hall and pulled a mop and some towels out. "Lets clean this up, then we need to get some sleep…" Cloud locked eyes with Yuffie. "We're here for you, Yu, till the end." She nodded and began to help with the clean up. Her stomach too knotted up to feel the nausea she normally would have felt.

* * *

_Ok, now it's up! Hope it was a good one, I worked extra hard...I'm gonna kick myself if there are tons of errors though heh. :) Love ya guys! Thanks for all the really wonderful reviews! _


	12. Heart to Heart

_A/N: Well since the last one was kind of a downer and it left a few unanswered questions I thought I should have some fluff…and more questions. Don't worry, the next chapter is hopefully going to be longer than this… :) _

_xOh…I don't own anyone in this story…except for Lou. Blah blah blah…x  
_

* * *

"Do you ever get sick of wearing black?" Yuffie queried, eyeing Vincent from her side of the bed. She and the others had finished 'clean up' and were all resting in their quarters. Godo was with Cid at the helm, keeping the pilot company since the other crewmen had been sent to their own rooms. Cloud and Tifa were in their room and so on, ending with Vincent and Yuffie in her room, on her bed talking about anything that had nothing to do with now. 

"I never really thought about it. Why, does it bother you?" He had been drinking warm milk with Yuffie, who now held the empty mug loosely in one hand.

"Nah, actually it looks… cool on you. Like a super mysterious…mystery man!" She grinned from ear to ear, thrusting her fist in the air. He gave her a look to which she giggled. "Yeah, it sounded better in my head."

"Do you really go around saving cats?" He arched an eyebrow at her. Her face fell as did the cup she'd been leaning over to sit down.

"…Only in Wutai." Vincent carefully brought his good hand up to take a hold of her elbow. "Do cats go to heaven?" She asked, smiling wistfully.

He smiled softly at the question before answering. "I think so…"

She let a small smile play at the corners of her mouth. Slowly she situated herself between his long legs to rest against his chest. He wrapped his arms loosely around her waist. She sighed softly into his shirt, the leather having been discarded not long after they had cleaned up the remains of the Lou clone.

That had been hard for Yuffie; she had become very fond of Lou in their years of knowing one another. She had thought of him as a big brother, someone to protect her from the reality truly being an heir of Wutai. He loved her more than he had ever been able to express in words to her. She knew though, and was grateful that he never pushed the marriage. She told him early on, before Cloud and Aeris 'discovered' her, that she had no intention of marrying him, that it wasn't in her nature. He understood her and in his own way accepted that. Yuffie was head strong and independent. She didn't want to be tied down or held back. She saw marriage as a binding ceremony that would only lead to suffering…that is until she met Vincent.

Glancing up at him through thick eyelashes, she smiled despite everything else. After leaving the second time, and with Lou's help, she found him. She stuck by him after that. She joined the WRO and worked for Reeve, she'd even been so nice as to give Cloud all the materia that had been discovered through their travels. Yuffie had changed from a thieving ninja kid and become an introspective woman haunted by her own future. She'd still maintain she was a ninja and would pull pranks on everyone now and again, but she was changed somehow. Tifa used to say it was her innocence lost. Once Aeris had passed away, and then Shelke had been introduced to the group…or rather Shelke and Lucrecia, that had gotten to Yuffie. Vincent had only opened up to her until then. When Shelke came along she was just like him, she knew him in ways Yuffie could only dream of. Worse yet, Vincent began to share his time with her, leaving Yuffie to feel like an outsider. The ten year old girl held the soul of his long lost love and it was understandable to some degree that he'd want to spend all the time he could with her, talking about his future and her past. So, after a little while Yuffie decided to take a chance and tell him how she felt. And…

Yuffie glanced away from Vincent suddenly, her breath hitched as she tried to calm her emotions. Tears burned her eyes and she hurriedly brushed them away as she carefully pulled away from the warm arms of the man beneath her. Vincent appeared to notice and made a motion to keep her in place. Yuffie gasped and froze.

"What is it, Yuffie?" he spoke with that deep calm voice. The one that melted all her worries away, that made her giddy with excitement when she heard it reverberating through him while he held her. At her lack of response he repeated the question, this time greeted with a quiet sob.

"You're going to leave me again…" Yuffie whimpered, somewhat pathetically. Vincent was taken aback by this. He thought she understood how he felt, after everything that had transpired. Completely confused, he cocked his head to one side and watched her intently with bright red eyes. She fought the urge to smile.

"Yuffie…I do not take what we have shared lightly." He pulled her gently back toward him. "I will not leave you unless you wish me to." She whimpered again in response. Lifting her silver eyes to his, she sighed before she spoke again.

"I told you I loved you…" She said softly, pulling herself further away, "I'm afraid you'll push me away again…You'll give me some excuse that this isn't right." Vincent continued to stare, completely unsure of where this was coming from or going, deciding to stay quiet, as that seemed to require less talking...or potentially yelling on her part, and he was genuinely confused. "I had come back for you, and I fought off that woman for you. I was so afraid you'd actually been hurt...Then after everything you still pushed me away and you acted like nothing had ever happened when we were at the Golden Saucer. What the hell happened up on that roof?! Who is that thing after me? Why does it look like you, why did he kill Lou or send that storm demon after us? Why did Lou…" she bit back another heavy sob. "I wish he had never met me! I want him back! It's all my fault, he didn't deserve to die like that…" She was crying now. Slightly shocked, Vincent wrapped his arms around the little ninja.

"I would never leave you, Yuffie." Vincent thought carefully about what to say, wanting to comfort the young woman. "Truly I'm sorry for Ryuugu…and that was not your fault." he stopped for a moment, something registering in his mind as he replayed her little tirade in his head. "I will protect you. From all of them, we will keep you safe." Yuffie's head shot up, eyes wide with hope. "Always…no one will ever harm you so long as we are here to save you." A slow smile worked its way across her lips. He meant he and Chaos would... "I will avenge him…and your country." Yuffie brought a small hand to his cheek, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Vincent…" his human hand slowly lifted to the one against his cheek. His eyes carried a certain heaviness, completely unlike the regret and sadness he carried with him for all those years. Yuffie couldn't help but smile as he continued.

"I will be here, by your side always." Vincent whispered as he slowly leaned toward her. He kissed her temple and down to her ear. "You are mine now and no one will take that from me…" She shivered involuntarily, heat rising to her cheeks. He continued to kiss and nip his way down her neck to her shoulders.

With nimble fingers, she began to work the buckles of his pants once more. His claw moved down to her silky nightgown, stopping at the hem and carefully working its way up underneath the fabric. The cool metal of his hand coming in contact with her skin sent another chill down her spine. She gasped as his human hand began to work the straps on her shoulders off. His lips were burning their way down to her chest as he maneuvered her to sit on his lap.

His claw held her thigh firmly, his thumb dangerously close to her sensitive core. His other hand began dragging the gown down, slowly uncovering new skin for him to taste.

"…Gods Vincent. Why do you torment me so?" She whispered breathless. His claw flexed, tightening its hold as he slowly drew his thumb across her over the thin garment acting as a flimsy barrier between the two. A pleasurable gasp escaped her while his lip simultaneously closed over a now exposed nipple.

"Are you asking me to stop…?" He caressed her once again with his thumb; she shuddered as she dug her nails into his shoulders, a low moan slipping passed her lips.

She looked down at him from her position. She was sitting astride him, the black nightgown doing very little to hide anything at all now. His eyes bore into her, filled with desire and mirth…almost completely devoid of sorrow. She slowly brought her head down to his, their lips a breath apart.

"…no." She crushed her lips against his, giving herself to him completely.

Later, as they lay still wrapped in the others embrace, Yuffie stole a glance at Vincent. He was sound asleep. She smiled warmly at him, burrowing a little deeper into his arms which tightened at the slightest movement from her. _'I love you...'_ she sighed, unable to say the three words aloud, satisfied in at least being able to recognize the emotion. _'One day...when all this is over, then I can tell him.'_ She let her eyes slowly close as she gave into sleep.

* * *

_Ok…so it was sort of sad…but not really. I'm stuck again, I can't decide which way I want to go. Any ideas? Sorry this chapter is so short :)_


	13. Little Truths

_A/N: Well, I'm glad you all enjoyed the last chapter :p it was nice to write something mostly fluffy. Thank you for all the great reviews! Hope you like this chapter too! Ok, so just for the record…I may be changing FF history just a tad…ok? Ok. On with story!_

_And I still don't own them. But it'd be a really awesome Christmas present winks in the direction of Squaresoft/Enix_

_5/17 Ok, I keep finding things I want to add to this. (looks around ) heh, wonder if anyone still reads this._

"Cid, they're getting close. How do you want to do this?" Cloud half shouted from the door. "What should they do? Jump?" He eyed the Sierra's deck and the approaching helicopter with mounting unease. "I don't think they can land…"

"Well no shit! This wasn't meant to hold a fucking helicopter. They're fuckin' Turks, make 'em jump." He growled, adjusting their heading and setting the autopilot. "How close are they?" Cid came to stand by Cloud. "We're about an hour from the crater. I'm gonna go get something to fuckin' eat." He walked down toward his galley as the airship continued her arduous journey toward the frigid Northern Crater.

Cloud waved the pilot of the black helicopter in, a rope ladder dropped and Elena and Tseng easily made their way down. Elena straightened her shirt and pants as she stood beside Tseng. "So…where are we at?" She glanced around for the other two. "And where are Reno and Rude?"

"Right here, princess." Reno chirped haughtily. She gave him her trademark glare in response.

"We're an hour from the crater. After that…I haven't the foggiest." Cloud ran a hand through his blond locks. "I never wanted to go back there…why would there be a temple there anyway?"

"Judging from the scans of the area, it's a recent development. There has been quite a bit of seismic activity here in the last several months. It's actually not too far off from the area where the general was defeated. The formation of the cave and surrounding area is entirely different." Elena produced a folder full of maps and layouts of the area. She paused at one scan for a moment and then glanced to Cloud. "Fragments of his body are still trapped in the mako. The entire lower half of the cavern, in fact, is all frozen in solid mako." Cloud sighed heavily, shaking his head slowly.

"After all that…for holy sake, he came out of Kadaj! How the…how is he still there?!" Cloud spoke angrily threw gritted teeth, his white knuckle grip nearly bending the steal railing.

"His body is in a sort of stasis, or what's left of it anyway. There's only one thing we could come up with." Elena turned to Tseng who nodded.

"You never really fought his physical form. He was exposed to incredible amounts of mako and fused with that being Jenova. Her alien cells could have given him telekinetic and telepathic abilities which would have allowed for him to fight you from a somewhat safe distance." Tseng concluded.

"That's ridiculous, yo, but it really seems to make sense. I mean, how else can he come out in those other silver haired freaks?" Reno added, leaning against the railing beside Elena. "Look, I know it's difficult to grasp. But that could explain all the sightings and him being in so many places at once…the murders." Reno's spoke solemnly.

"Then how did we 'kill' him?" Cloud didn't look up at any of them.

"Well...maybe the damage you do to the mind can manifest itself physically." Tifa stepped up next to Cloud, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Perhaps we didn't kill him so much as we simply destroyed his mind." She shook her head. "That's sort of depressing." She looked from Cloud to Tseng. "Is he going to be a problem?"

Tseng shook his head. "He's probably too badly damaged to come back anytime soon. After that last fight and the little Cetra's intervention I have a feeling he'll be bound for a very long time."

"Is he ever going to die? I mean, I've defeated him twice and Jenova's dead. How does this keep happening?!" Cloud let out a frustrated sigh.

"He could be as immortal as me." Vincent's spoke calmly. "Is it at all possible that this is the original?" He turned to Tseng and Elena. Reno slowly glanced to the gunman and then to his boss with a twisted glare.

"No way…it couldn't be, he died during the early testing phases and his body was poked, prodded and pulled apart, all in the name of science." Reno's eyes flashed with an eerie luminosity. "That's just sick to even think that kid made it anywhere..." Cloud and Tifa exchanged confused glances.

"He was tortured! Tortured from the second he left his mothers womb! What's worse is that sick fuck of a president knew what was going on and let fucking Hojo and that bitch do it…"he finished with a growl. "Her own kid…and you think we're fucked." He nodded at Cloud, who looked rather pale. "Yeah, you think you know 'bout the good ol' General…think again, Spike."

"Is all of Jenova now destroyed?" Vincent continued after Reno finished. "She had been sealed in the life stream during the last battle and resurfaced during the second crisis." He shifted under the heavy red cloak, leaning across from Cloud.

"She should be nearly eradicated now. The Cetra cleansed the planet-"

"Just Edge, the rain only affected Edge and the Forgotten Capital." Reno informed them, interrupting Elena, who shot him a dirty look.

"As I was saying, she cleansed the portion of life stream containing what was left of the body." She paused, sending another hateful glare to Reno. "Cloud and the others exposed to her cells could potentially die if she were removed 'completely'." Elena shut the folder and handed it to Tifa, as Cloud refused to look away from the clouds they flew amongst.

"So she'll always be a part of me?" he whispered turning to look over Tifa's shoulder.

"Your body has made her cells a vital part of you. If it weren't for her cells you would have died a long time ago when he ran you through. The regenerative qualities kept you alive." The blond Turk attempted to reason with him.

"The rest kept me connected to _'him'_ and nearly killed everyone I loved." Cloud made a valiant attempt to stare Elena down. "You don't get it, there is no good side to this." He insisted vehemently.

"Enough!" Tifa held her hands up over her head. "We aren't here to talk about Jenova or her dead minions or the torture she put us _all_ through. We need to figure out who or what is after Yuffie and why." Tifa, hands on her hips, shot a rather ominous stare toward both Elena and Reno. "So if we could please focus on the problem at hand instead of hashing threw all these old, dead memories, that'd be great." Obediently Elena produced a laptop and began spouting information. Tifa gave Cloud a sly smile before giving her full attention to the Turks.

* * *

Yuffie sat alone in her room. She had finally decided to put a whole set of clothes on after spending most of last night and much of the morning with Vincent. _'Since when did you become such a sexpot?' _she mentally chastised. She really couldn't help it, it just felt so right. Anything to take her mind of the current situation was welcome. 

Yuffie fiddled with the origami like paper for her mighty Conformer. "…wonder if I'll ever see the sakura blossoms in spring again." She spoke softly to the folded paper. Grabbing the only bag of things she'd had, she rummaged through till she found the photo album she kept with her, adding to it every chance she had. Oddly one of the earliest photos was with her father and a rather dashing man of six foot. His long silver hair and ethereal eyes belying his malevolence, _'How charming can one baddie be?' _she thought as she stared at the photo.

"That was taken two years before you were born. General Sephiroth had been sent to ensure the transition was going smoothly. Reno and another Turk I can't remember were with him. He was cold and empty through and through, you'd never think it talking to the man; he took his duty with such pride and honor. I remember talking to him for hours on the customs and rituals of Wutai; he seemed genuinely interested in our country." Godo surprised her, slipping into her room unnoticed. "But that was before…" his voice trailed off.

"Was he ever nice, you know…to talk to?" She tilted the picture this way and that trying to see if maybe a new angle would reveal the fire that drove him to destroy all the things he had helped to create. "Was he always crazy?"

"No. He was a dark, foreboding presence…but I wouldn't go so far as to call him crazy. He was incredibly intelligent. But everything about him was," He paused, searching for the right word. "Hateful, unimpressive…beneath him. Even his smile seemed hateful. You know the story behind the General don't you?" Yuffie shook her head no.

"Not all of it." She said softly, still entranced with the photo. Slowly she flipped to the next one. This was Sephiroth standing with Sita, Yuffie's former caretaker.

"He was the top scientist of Shin Ra's son. His blood had been infused with the Jenova cells since before he was born; they also exposed him to large amounts of mako. He was maybe six when the first clone had been started." He let out a long sigh.

"How do you know all this? Isn't this sort of out of the realm of things necessary that you know? Seems like Shin Ra would've done well not to let you get a hint of all this." Yuffie eyed him suspiciously.

"How long do you think I've been dealing with Turks?" She shrugged. "Do you know even a little about Tseng? He's like a cousin to you." Her eyes nearly bugged out of her head.

"What?! You're so joking, I'd never in a millions years be related to someone that evil." She covered her mouth with her one hand, strangling the feathers out of a pillow in her lap.

"Afraid he is. He supplied me with all the information. You were all in the dark about him, Sephiroth I mean. The boy died after six long, torturous years of intensive testing and endless experiments. By then they had nine clones of him. I hear that in itself was a source of endless pain for him. He was very nearly insane when he died…" Godo shook his head sadly.

"What…what happened to his mother?" Yuffie leaned closer to her father, the photo album lying between them, the picture staring back at them. "Did anyone take care of him?" She took a deep, shuddering breath. "Did he die alone?"

Godo nodded soundlessly, eyes transfixed on the photo. "She willfully put him through that. It was science, not motherhood." Droplets of water splattered on it as if a rain cloud had suddenly manifested over Yuffie's head.

"How can someone be that awful to a child?" She whispered. "He deserves so much more…" She glanced up, wiping her eyes. "So what happened with the clones?"

"Hojo, I think that was his name, he conducted the same tests on each one. All suffered similar side effects: brain damage, seizers, severe crippling. Some died, more were made. About seven altogether I think survived, the strongest of which was General Sephiroth. I can't recall if he was six or nine, the tattoo made it difficult to determine. He bonded with the Jenova cells and mako. It was sickening the things they did to him while he was there. There were injections he was given, of pure mako. He'd convulse and vomit blood. You'd never picture him being the commander of anything more than a pair of socks in that condition. Worse yet, he retained all the memories of the original."

Yuffie gawked at this revelation. _'What if we were wrong all this time? Maybe we could have saved him…'_ She shook the thought from her head. There was no hope for him, he was mad. Completely insane, at least by the time the end happened. And even so, it wasn't even really him, it was a clone of him.

"You would have loved watching him during his morning exercises. He could perform flawlessly and beautifully with his Nodachi, Masamune. He'd rise with the sun and stay out in the gardens for hours." Godo thumbed threw a few pages of the album. "Where…there, here's a shot of him in the gardens one morning. It seemed to be an ideal time to take a picture. The fog was rolling in from the ocean, the sakura blossoms were falling all around him like snow, the wind toying with his hair just so." He motioned with his hands. The picture itself was breathtaking. The flower petals seemed to fall all around him, not daring to land on him in fear of disturbing his silent meditation. He sat lotus style on a mat, green tea sitting on a tray directly before him. His head was bowed slightly, gravity defying bangs giving in to the heavy dampness of the moister and hiding half of his face from view.

"…he's beautiful." She breathed; shocked she thought that about her former adversary.

"All demons are, Yuffie dear. That is how they lure you in." She nodded in agreement.

"I need to go walk around a little, I feel awful." She stood on wobbly legs and steadied herself before leaving.

"The airship isn't rocking that badly, why are you hobbling around like a drunk?" He inquired as she stumbled to the door.

"Mind your own business old timer!" Laughing she darted out of the room

* * *

"Hey! Yu, we're almost to the Crater. I was just gonna send Vince to go get you." Cloud nodded toward the silent gunman. Yuffie made her way carefully to stand by him. He wrapped his arm and cloak around her slight, shivering form. 

"We have very little information about this individual." Tseng's tone was icy, as he watched Vincent holding Yuffie.

"What…er who?" She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts.

"An old experiment of Hojo's. He'd been working on cloning technology and such with the top scientists…which would have of course included Lucrecia. This is an exact copy of Vincent. He is a complete recreation of Valentine's genetic structure."

"What's his damn motive? Or is he just another one of those revenge freaks?" She shrunk against Vincent's arm.

"A clear motive has not been established as of yet." Tseng shifted under her dark stare. "Revenge is plausible though…"

"Isn't it always?" She asked, voice thick with contempt. "Well why me?"

"I'm not so sure you are the only target." He looked toward Vincent. "You," he pointed one slender finger directly at the gunman. "You are Lucrecia's greatest victory in science, but Hojo had other plans for you. You are, or were, his most valued test subject." Vincent bristled at the thought.

"How is that?" His eyes narrowed at Tseng. "As far as I know he loathed my very existence. Lucrecia was behind this." He held up his claw arm.

"You make him a God…" Reno cut in. "She channeled Chaos and he supplied the other four demons, and not only did you live, you can control them. The strongest of which is actually a defender of the planets dark side so to speak." Reno gave a shallow laugh. "Yo, you're like a demon yourself. Your arm, your speed, strength and those damned eyes. You will live forever because of what he did to you. There's no gettin' outta that. You're just like good ol' Seph. You two will be cursed to endure eternity…alone." He paused to think for a moment. "Well at least you literally have all the time in the world to angst your little heart out."

"Reno, grow up." Elena growled out to Reno. He laughed and lit a cigarette.

"So…this guy, this clone of Vincent, he wants to kill him because he's better?" Tifa pointed to Vincent. "How does killing Yuffie or destroying Wutai come into all this? We're no closer to solving this than we were at the Golden Saucer…"

Tseng sighed, rubbing his temples in frustration. It wasn't like him to not understand something or be able to explain the situation to a perfect 't'. "I'm not so sure that it wants just one over the other. I have a feeling they each have a quality necessary for whatever his greater scheme may be." Tseng took a folder back from Tifa, flipping through a few pages of the report. "We have no name for him, no idea how exactly he came to be. It was Lucrecia who started all this transference business. She assisted with all major cloning operations, worst of all she condoned and even supported the experimentation on her own child. The pair aren't exactly beacons of life, light and honesty." Elena nodded in that way one does when they are so complete sick of something they just can't hear anymore. Cloud felt the same way, four hours and nothing had been resolved. He seriously contemplated how badly he'd be hurt if jumped off the side of the Sierra. A white glow caught his attention.

"Yuffie, what's in your hand?" Cloud eyed the opal colored orb. It shone brightly in Yuffie's small hand. "Is that some new materia?"

"It is a tear of Leviathan. It isn't a materia like fire or anything, it's a luck charm passed down through the generations of my family, and it's passed down to the future heirs. My mother gave it to me the day she died. All I know is it makes me stronger if I'm thinking of her." Yuffie ended abruptly, both Cloud and Vincent knowing there was more to the story than she let on.

'_**It **_**is**_** Leviathan. Her mother defeated the serpent and claimed one favor in return.'**_ Chaos whispered into Vincent's subconscious. _**'Though I'm sure the girl has no idea how to use it…'**_

'_Protect Yuffie…'_ It was like bells and whistles were actually going off. He had to resist the urge to roll his eyes. _'You mean she knew all this would come to pass and Yuffie would need the Great Serpents help?'_

'_**So to speak, she knew Yuffie would need her mother. Yuffie is a direct descendent of Leviathan.' **_The words weren't quite making sense to Vincent. _**'A good portion of Wutai is descendent from ancient clans of various forms, Yuffie is a descendent of a God. Her mother is the reincarnation of a priestess of Leviathan…it's a long story ending in Yuffie being a direct descendent of Leviathan, what's to get?' **_

'_Yuffie's mother…__**is**__ Leviathan, or a descendent there of?'_ Vincent bowed his head, not listening to the others trying to figure out what a possible motive could have been to obliterate Wutai. A mental slap helped bring everything into focus _'Oh…it can't be…'_ he slowly lifted his gaze, meeting Cloud's. The blond stood as he recognized the look of sudden realization on Vincents face.

"What is it?" he lifted an eyebrow.

"It _is_ Yuffie…" Vincent spoke aloud in response to Chaos. Everyone eyed him suspiciously.

"She gave it to me before bed; she started to sing but never finished the song. It was horrible, I knew she was being sent to her death but…I don't understand why she had to be the sacrifice. What good did it do? Wutai is a pile of ash, my people are dead and the survivors have no where to return to. That…" Yuffie broke off, choking on her own tears. _'I sure do cry a lot now…' _an image of Cid made her smile to herself.

"What is it…do you know?" Tifa spoke in that gentle, motherly tone of hers. The one that always made Yuffie feel safe.

"It is my mother; her spirit guides me through this." She held the orb up for inspection.

"Like Aeris and the Holy materia." Tifa spoke softly.

"I prayed to Leviathan every single day, I begged him to keep my mother safe. He should have spared her." Yuffie was starring at her shoes like she'd never seen anything like them before. "I've only seen him once," Her eyes held that far away look. "Sephiroth ran her through, it was supposed to be a surrender of Wutai but the general was bloodthirsty, angry, and greedy. We had been withholding food and supplies from their troops. They tried brutality and were soon shown why you don't invade a village of ninja. My mother was never one for violence though; she called a meeting with Sephiroth. When he killed her, I saw him; he was alive in the wind and the ocean. He was roaring through the village and their encampment. A plague he gave them sent them packing." Yuffie finished, tightening her grip on Vincent.

"If the clone was able to have Leviathan and Chaos under his control…"Vincent began.

"We wouldn't stand a chance." Cloud finished.

"Are you suggesting he's after you two for the beings you possess?" Tseng lifted his head to eye Yuffie.

"What else would it want? It tried to kill Yuffie, twice." Cloud remembered the night at the Saucer and their narrow escape from Wutai. "Both times Vincent was with her." A contemplative silence fell over the group.

"We need to hurry and get to that temple." Tifa's voice broke the quiet, sending everyone into action.

* * *

_Still couldn't figure out where to end this one, but I think it needed more back story and a little cleaning up. I think I made it worse…but no matter! I'm still stuck on the new chapter…but I really hope to have it up this week at least._


	14. Jardine De Cecile

_AN: Well…no long spiel today. I own nothing now…hey! I own my clones! I made them up all by myself…sort of. Christmas shopping sucks! The stores are always packed with crazy people. Sheesh…_

* * *

It was nearly pitch black out on the deck of the Sierra, the moon being the only source of light. That was more than enough for a set of well trained eyes. Whisper quiet, she made her was to the helm, adjusting the heavy bag on her back. Cid sat slumped in his chair, a tooth pick hanging precariously from his lips. She smiled softly at the pilot.

With a quick glance behind her, the little ninja ducked into the chocobo holding pen. He was down there still, shifting from foot to foot, eagerly waiting for her.

"Hello, Valentine…" She easily hopped onto the chocobos back. He turned, slowly heading towards the section of the pen that had been opened up for Cloud to keep Fenrir. "…Fly" she whispered. Without hesitation the bird leaped over the railing, spreading his small wings and gliding down to the ground. A small giggle escaped Yuffie as the fell. She activated a summon, closing her eyes she reveled in the feel of the materia in her Imperial Guard. Reno won't mind her borrowing it.

Below her the ground began to shake and crack. A rift formed and two strong arms appeared and pulled the rest of the large body up. He leaped toward the falling choco, easily catching it in one large hand, then landing heavily on the ground and setting the pair down. Yuffie smiled as Titan turned and dove back into the rift, closing it behind him. The materia losing its glow.

She glanced back up at the Sierra as it flew in a slow circle above the crater. A sudden pain shot through her, from her toes to the back of her head. She grabbed the red reins of Valentines bridle.

"Hurry, we have to hurry!" Yuffie hissed as the bird bolted for the opening at break neck speed.

* * *

'_**Well…now what? She got you that time.'**_ Chaos chided.

'_What are you talking about?' _Vincent groaned, he couldn't move a muscle or open his eyes. _'…Yuffie cast sleep on me.'_ He sighed heavily as the grogginess started to lift.

'_**She has gone down to the Temple of Light…Get up already.'**_ The demon forced Vincent's eyes open. With a thick groan, he stood. His head felt heavy and his vision was still blurry. He stumbled to the door, holding himself up for a full minute before moving again.

"What the hell was that?" came a groggy voice beside Vincent. He slowly turned, regaining his composure. Reno stood rubbing his eyes and wobbling slightly.

"Yuffie cast sleep on us." The gunman answered in his usual monotone.

"That takes a lot of time though…" Tifa pushed passed Reno. "God, that kid can be so stubborn." She hissed.

"What should we do?" Reno shook his head again, trying to shake the sleep spell.

"Go look for her." Tifa stated, crossing her arms over her chest.

"We should hurry. She has a bit of a lead on us." Vincent turned toward the helm where Cid had been keeping watch. He stumbled out, none too gracefully, affirming Vincent's suspicion that he hadn't been spared.

"She took my goddamned 'All' materia! It took me six months to master that damn thing!" Cid growled, still trying to shake the effects of sleep.

"Cloud's still sleeping, so are Barrett and Red-"

"Red ain't here!" Barret interrupted from just down the hall. "Not in my room or Spikes."

"Think he went after her?" Reno glanced to Vincent. He merely nodded in reply.

"Let's get whoever is here up and get moving. We don't have much time." Tifa turned her attention to angry clouds forming on the distant horizon. "It'll be here soon."

* * *

They practically flew down threw the cavern, dodging boulders and low overhangs as they made their way deeper into the crater. The passageways were getting smaller, too small for a large black chocobo. She easily dismounted and told him to head back to the top of the crater. At least she could be sure Cloud or Cid would take him back to the Sierra at some point. Obediently it turned and made its way to the mouth of the caves and Yuffie turned to move deeper inside.

She was driven to something. She had no idea who or what she was going to find, all she knew was Aeris said to go. She held the opal colored materia in her hand then slid it into the only open spot on her newly acquired Imperial Guard. She felt faster and stronger and she could swear she could even see better than usual.

A noise behind her caught her off guard and she slipped. _'Ah, hell…they can't have found me already.' _She struggled to get a new hand hold but failed. She felt herself falling backwards. _'I'm gonna die…nononono!'_

"Gotcha!" Came a gruff voice threw a mouthful of her arm.

"Red?" She cocked her head to the side as he began to pull her up to safety. "What are you doing here?" He nodded to a resist materia.

"Guess it works on ninja too." He chuckled as she rolled her eyes.

"Figures that you, the only cat beastie in the group, would resist the magnificent charm of the great Yuffie Kisaragi!" She threw her hand up in a triumphant gesture. He scoffed at her remark. Slowly she turned to look at him. "So what the hell are you doing following me?"

He shot a wide eyed stare her way. "I uh, I came to find you…" he said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"So I've noticed…why?" She frowned now, hands on her hips. "I have to do this alone; I can't take you all down with me…" she sighed looking down the dark corridors of the cavern. "I don't remember it being this big."

"It has indeed grown since the last time we visited." Red spoke softly, nodding his head slightly. "Well I'm going with you. If you're in danger, I'm going with you. I shall offer as much of my assistance as I can ninja Kisaragi." She gave him a warm, rare smile. Her eyes shone with a sort of gladness he'd never seen in her. He was noticing that there was a lot there he hadn't noticed before. She was no longer the materia hunter/thief from Wutai. She was the Empress defending her country and avenging her people.

"Thank you, Nanaki." She bowed slightly and turned to the darkness. "Let's move…they aren't far behind." He nodded in response.

* * *

'_**She's moving quickly, deeper into the temple. The beast has followed her.'**_ Chaos growled in frustration. _**'He is upon us again and he will tear us apart. You are not prepared to deal with **_**it **_**yet.' **_The worry in the demons voice was evident, and it constantly gnawed at the edge of Vincents mind.

'_Does it have a weakness, anything at all?' _Vincent struggled to keep the demon locked inside. He clamped his eyes shut in frustration. Nothing was coming together, Yuffie was down in Sephiroth's tomb and he was faced with an invincible foe and a demon. He was angry with her for not having faith in him enough to let him help her, for stealing equipment from the rest of the crew, at Red for going. He opened his eyes, he gasped as a flash of light engulfed him. _'Aeris…'_

'_Vincent, why are you so worried?' _her soft voice echoing in his mind.

'_She is in danger, I am helpless to save her…I cannot fail this time.' _His voice was low and he was sound in his resolve.

'_How can you fail if it is not your task to complete?'_ she reasoned.

'_Yuffie may die-'_he could feel the panic and anger wrapping around his heart.

'_At any moment you may lose the one you love. That does not make you the failure; it completes the natural progression of their life.'_ She spoke softly, a hint of a smile in her words. However, Yuffie dieing was not the natural progression of anything as far as he was concerned.

'_You were murdered.'_ Vincent growled, anger he never showed flaring up. He had let her down as well.

'_I did what was needed.' _That shocked him, causing him to become angrier with her and himself.

'_He ran you through, he murdered you and you call it natural progression.'_ She smiled at his little outburst and nodded.

'_It is. He is ruled by another, his mind was never his own. When you are one faced with such a heavy task as that, you learn to forgive before the wrong is done.' _His anger melted. He had killed him, had heard of all the testing and lived…or died in the mansion he lost himself in and had loved the woman who had been his mother. He had been there…and failed. Then it hit him…

'_You were smiling…'_ Vincent could clearly see the light smile gracing her lips as Sephiroth hovered over her, sword rammed through her heart. The whispered _'I love you…' _floating from her lips as they breathed their last.

'_I love him. I love you all, Vincent. I have part of him with me always now, to look after his shattered soul.'_ He could almost picture her standing there, smiling down at the remains of the man who had taken her life.

'_Kadaj, Loz and Yazoo, they're with you?' _His voice lost much of its bite, now sounding calm and peaceful.

'_Always, their heart is my heart, their pain was my pain. You alone cannot beat the darkness above, but you will defeat the demon within. I believe in you.' _She began to fade; quickly his human hand caught hers. She paused, giggling at him.

'_Aeris…'_ He breathed, turning sideways enough to see her out of the corner of his eye.

'_Yes, Vincent?'_ She smiled at knowing what he would say.

'…' For the first time in a long time he felt it. Unrelenting, unyielding passion, unfailing trust and need for another person. He felt it racing through him like fire. He couldn't find the words to say what he felt, thirty years with a dead heart had robbed him of the ability.

'_I know.' _She smiled, laughing a beautiful, silvery laugh just for him. She could never say with words what a victory this would mean for all the others, but she was unabashedly proud with her own small win. _'And I am so glad._' She gave his human hand a tight squeeze and then was gone.

* * *

_AN: Ok, hope you like this one. Sorry it's not as long as I wanted it to be. BUT! I really like how this turned out. Up next: Yuffie and Red go spelunking in materia heaven. As always, please review! I love 'em soooo much:)_


	15. Eyes of God part 1

_A/N: Hope everyone had a great New Years! Also I guess it is the Sherra or Shera after all…but I'm gonna leave it the Sierra because it's too late to go back and change it. So…sorry about that. I rewrote this three times, I hope it came out ok. Also, if you want to read a really amazing fic check out Pierrot by lilithvermillion. She is really quite amazing. Anyways…on with the story. Oh, and I'm pretty sure I spelled alter (as in an alter like one you pray at, not to alter something) wrong. I hate that...  
_

* * *

Yuffie and Red made quick work of the maze of caverns leading to the center most point of the crater. She was out of breath and bruised up, a ten foot fall nearly breaking her ankle and leaving her left arm with a deep cut. Red used a cure materia, closing the cut on her arm without leaving so much as a scar. 

"We're almost there, I can feel it." She glanced down the dark corridor of rock and crystallized materia. "You okay?" She glanced back at him; he nodded with a slight growl. They ran quickly, ignoring the tired pleas of her aching muscles, pushing her body to move faster and faster. The end of the tunnel opened up to a large fissure. Yuffie slid to a stop, very nearly falling into the gaping hole. She could see a light down below, and water.

"Climb on my back, I can get us down there." Red said softly, leaning toward the ninja. She obediently slid onto his back, hanging on as best she could without pulling too tightly on his fur. "Ready?" She nodded in response. He crept forward slowly, gauging where the best foot falls were. "…ok, here it goes." He dropped to the first one and second, easily navigating his way down the side of the cliff. At the ground, Yuffie leaped off, gracefully landing on her feet, knee deep in water.

"The water is…warm. How strange…" She made her way to the entrance of the lower cave where the light was coming from. She stood silently beside Red; her skin tingled with fear and adrenaline as old memories flooded back to her. There, frozen in the mako, was the Masamune. "His sword, that's…that's really creepy." She pulled a face, walking up to the sealed blade.

"It was supposed to be a holy sword, created to purify the world…I believe. It has been a very long time since I read up on it." Red stood on his hind legs to get a better view of the sword.

"How did he get it then?" She glanced around, noticing all the walls were glowing faintly. "I mean, he's pure evil…who would give him a sword like that?"

"I don't recall, probably given to him as part of the Jenova project." Red mused.

"What…like a consolation prize? 'Gee, we're real sorry your "mom" is an alien and you're a clone…here, take this ridiculously large sword and burn a village.' God, what a hideous weapon." She glared at the sword.

"I believe President Shin Ra gave it to him, actually." Red chuckled at the ninja. Leave it to her to make a joke out of the weapon and man who had nearly destroyed the whole planet.

"Talk about irony." Yuffie laughed lightly. "Well lets go, this hunk o' steel is really creeping me out." She headed deeper into the cave, Red close behind.

* * *

Tifa cast a worried glance out toward the storm clouds closing in on them. She was counting the seconds between each crack of thunder, it was definitely getting closer. She turned to Cloud, he stood in the middle of the circle of friends, he was trying to come up with a plan to get Yuffie and Red back and still be able to fight off the demon chasing them down. 

"We don't have much time; the structural integrity of the crater is being compromised." Elena spoke quickly, typing with expert precision. "And it would appear Miss Kisaragi is deep in the heart of the whole mess."

"I thought this temple was above ground! What the hell is she doin' ass deep in Sephiroth's tomb?" Cid growled, frustrated with the inevitable battle they now faced. "Damn that brat!"

"It is not clear where exactly the 'temple' is or if it really is a temple. Someone needs to get down there and get her back up here." Elena looked up to her audience of confused men. "Vincent, you've got the speed and strength, you go." She demanded when no one else responded.

"Right, hurry Vince. We're counting on you. We'll hold that thing off till you three get back." Tifa gave his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. Without so much as a backward glance, he was off. Dropping to the ground below with practiced grace, he made his way quickly to the entrance. Valentine stood there, nervously shifting from foot to foot. Vincent carefully approached the large bird, digging through one of the packs on its back for greens. He sat a few bunches of greens out for it, making a mental note to get the bird to safety as soon as they got out.

It had been easy enough to pick up her trail; somehow he just knew which path to follow.

'**_You are short on time, move faster. That creatures hungers for their blood.'_** Chaos thrashed eagerly at the corners of his mind.

'_I'm aware of that, get me to Yuffie and you'll have your second shot at that demon.'_ He felt Chaos pause, only for a second and then he felt the demons speed and strength become his own. Vincent smiled inwardly, the demon was so easy to bribe.

'**_I wouldn't be so sure about that…'_** The demon gave a dark laugh and the thrashing ceased. Vincent could feel the malignant grin twisting its way onto the demons face.

* * *

They hadn't gone far when the first quake rippled through the cavern. They didn't pause to think about it either, Red following hot on Yuffie's heels as they ran into deeper water. 

"I see an opening ahead!" Yuffie shouted as she trudged through the clear water. Red grunted in reply, the water was too high for him to walk now so he was reduced to dog paddling. "Hey, I have an idea." She adjusted an ice materia on Conformer. "On the count of three can you jump out of the water?" He stopped to see if he could even reach the ground. He nodded as his hind paws easily came in contact with the warm stone surface. "Ok, here it goes. One…two…three!" They leaped out of the water and Yuffie cast 'Ice 3' and thus froze the water into something they could hopefully navigate a little easier. She hadn't thought of how slick ice was until she landed and her legs went right out from under her. Red, however, landed gracefully, grateful to be out of the water. Carefully the ninja stood. "Okay, forgot about the whole slip and fall on ice thing." Red chuckled as he slid passed her.

"At least we aren't in it anymore." He said with his ever present optimistic lilt.

With help from Red they made it to the opening, once inside Yuffie could clearly see a small flight of stairs leading up to an alter. She jumped away from Red and landed easily on the stone surface of one of the steps. Red did his best to hurry over to her, but was finding it difficult to maintain his footing suddenly.

She ran, skipping a stair or two her and there, as she made her way up. She had just begun to realize the striking similarities between this alter and the one Aeris had prayed at. She slowed to a stop before the alter itself, her heart hammering in her chest from excursion and adrenaline.

"It looks just like the alter where she died, Nanaki." Yuffie breathed. She approached the porcelain table carefully, letting her fingers slowly slide along the surface.

"Be careful, we don't know what dangers may be lurking down here. The clone may have set all this up in some sort of elaborate trap." He glanced around, trying to find anything that would signify this being a dangerous mistake.

"Look at this…" she half whispered, the white orb in her hand resonating with the stone in the temple. "I can feel her. I can feel my mother." Her eyes went blank as she stared at the orb in her hand.

"Yuffie, we need to get out of here. Don't you hear…Yuffie?" Red tugged at her hand, she stumbled back but did not change her facial expression or make a move to look away. "Yuffie, what's going on? Come on, answer me!" He shouted, worry etched into his features. He'd felt something was wrong even before they made their way into the cavern. The sword in the wall reaffirmed his feelings that something was indeed very wrong. Now there was that horrible mewling sound, it was like nails on a chalkboard.

From somewhere above him came a deep, guttural growl followed by a hiss and a horrible screech. Red's fur stood on end, the sound was getting closer by the second.

"Yuffie, snap out of it!" Red roared one last time at the ninja.

* * *

He could hear Red calling her name and forced himself to move even faster. The little quakes were gathering in intensity and frequency. 

'**_They're fighting it now, it will crush them and there will be nothing you can do.'_** The demon howled furiously, gnashing its teeth in sheer frustration.

'_I can not be in two places! I must get to them first!'_ Vincent was usually very patient himself with the demon, but his insistence to be free was beginning to irritate him.

'**_Who is it you think I speak of, fool?'_** Vincent almost lost control of the demon right there. He slid a bit on the melting ice before the cave entrance, catching himself with his claw. He closed his eyes for a moment, forcing all his power to obey him.

'_Galian…'_ He could feel bones shifting, fur covering his arms, he could even hear the faint sound of leather tearing as his legs were suddenly too large for the pants.

Using claws and teeth, Red was furiously trying to fight off the massive malformed beast. It was much like chimera, with the very obvious exception of the center head, instead of the goat looking head there was what appeared to be a haggard old woman's head, her eyes black as pitch, hair the color of moon light, her teeth sharp as daggers and venom dripped from her weathered chin and foul jaws. There was still a dragons head to the left of her and a feline like beast to the right. The dragon was covered in dark, rotting green scales, molten saliva falling in thick, unruly tendrils from its massive jaws. The cat like head was more hideous than the dragon. Its face was covered in mottled red and pale white loose hairless skin, its eyes were sunken in and the color of blood. The teeth were angled forward, the canines protruding out a good four inches, looking very much like tusks. As it hissed at them the skin covering the snout, jaws all the way to just behind its eyes peeled back, causing Red to yelp and jump away in fear.

Vincent glanced around quickly for Yuffie, hoping she hadn't already been wounded.

'**_There…by the alter.' _**He felt her before he saw her, his keen eyes locking onto her. She was practically glowing, hands folded as she stood staring at the orb levitating before her. **_'The similarities are uncanny…' _**It made his skin crawl to think of it, but the demon was right. With inhuman speed he was up there, beside her, she didn't even seem to notice him.

There was a sudden blood curdling cry from Red as the sound of bones breaking and flesh tearing hit Vincent. He turned and with a deafening roar, launched himself at the beast Red had desperately tried to fight off. The dragon head turning to breathe its white hot fire at him. Vincent was stopped a foot from the dragon's face, the sheer force and heat from the fire forcing him back. His first swipe left massive tears down one side of one of the beasts' heavy jaws and the second from his gauntlet covered arm nearly taking the entire jaw off. The head tried to roar in pain but the sound that came out was more like gurgling and choking, only half of the jaw being able to function at all. In a flash Vincent jumped sideways, grabbing a claw full of the feline creatures head, tearing the loose skin enough to expose the firm muscles of its neck. It howled in rage at the attack, lips curling back passed its eyes as it brought a huge wing down to crush Vincent's beastly form into the stone. The stones beneath him cracked and the cave gave another soft shudder from the force of the blow.

Suddenly Red, now mostly healed, leaped for the wing and successfully knocked the beast of its center of gravity, causing it to stumble back and release its hold on Vincent's body.

Vincent was caught off guard by the things massive tail. He moved to jump away only to have the wing slam him into the ground again. The barbed tail soared through the air toward him. He braced for the impact that never came. A whistling sound caught his attention; Conformer came tearing through the air, there was a sickening crunch as it connected and stuck in the things tail. A green materia glowing violently as the magic was released. The air around Vincent was electric and tinged with the green, he ripped himself free and he and Red dove out of the way as 'Utlima' erupted from the shuriken. The dragon head was disintegrated in the blast and Conformer released itself, returning to its master's hands. Yuffie did not smile at her little victory. She glowered at the beast before her. Her mind was bombarded by thoughts, memories and a voice that was not hers or the flower girls.

'_Harden your heart to the darkness of doubt. Do not despair…'_ She narrowed her eyes at the center head. _'Let evil not into your soul.'_

The hag head finally moved, turning to Yuffie and smiling. She felt her skin crawl and was wishing with all her heart she could look somewhere, anywhere, else. The endless black eyes pierced her heart; she swore she could feel her very soul breaking apart as it began to make a sound that could almost be mistaken for some sort of tormented song. Yuffie dropped Conformer and covered her ears to block out the horrible sound; she felt her blood beginning to boil as something was slowly taking over her conscious mind.

'_Be not afraid; do not forget I am with you…'_ She felt the presence wrapping itself around and her, its consciousness becoming hers. _'My strength is your strength.'_

'**_MOVE! SILENCE IT!'_** The drive to move had never been so strong in his life. He ran, changing his form once again, his heart was hammering in his chest…fear. He was afraid, terrified even, of what was about to happen.

Without thinking he plunged the clawed arm of Chaos into the gruesome mess that was the dragon head, reaching for anything and tearing it out. The hag shifted her gaze to him, the lion head shrieking in pain. Chaos roared in sheer rage at the thing before him. She opened her mouth, making a sound like nothing the three had ever heard.

Red howled in terror and pain, clawing at his face and ears in an attempt to rid himself of the horrible visage and its terrible noise. Vincent felt his control on the demons slipping, he'd never lost control of the other three, but now he could barely keep himself pulled together. Vincent felt as though he'd break into a thousand pieces if the pain didn't stop.

'_The darkness will not have you, you are mine. My power is absolute…' _

Yuffie collapsed to her knees, hands fisted at her temples as she shook her head violently back and forth. "Stay out of my head, stay out of my head, stay out of my head…" She repeated over and over like a mantra to ward off the evil trying to force its way into her mind.

_'You are mine...' _The presence repeated.

There was a flash; she felt her body become impossibly hot. She kept her eyes clamped shut for fear of what she might see. The pounding in her head was almost deafening, she cried out as she felt a hot liquid slide across her lips and chin, finally falling to her knees in tiny droplets. She kept her eyes closed still as sobs racked her thin frame.

'_Open your eyes.' _It was a demand; she shook her head in the negative. _'Open your eyes, Kisaragi.' _That wasn't Aeris, she wouldn't do it. She was stronger than that thing down there.

'_Yuffie…be brave now. Your love for them is stronger, you are their salvation…We are here with you.' _Her heart fluttered, she felt tears of supreme relief as the flower girls melodic voice filtered through her mind. Slowly, cautiously she let her eyes open.

"The flowers…" She slowly sat back on her knees, taking no notice of the warm blood trailing from her nose. She jumped to her feet, quickly wiping the blood from her chin with the back her hand. She tugged at the fingerless gloves she wore, glancing every which way for anyone.

'_Yuffie…Why are you so scared?' _She froze, feeling Aeris standing behind her.

'_I don't know what to do; I can't lift a finger to fight that thing.' _An image of Vincent crumpled on the stone floor beside Nanaki, both howling in pain, sent her mind reeling. _'They're dying and I'm helpless to do anything!'_ The panic took over once more; her heart began to pound in her chest as she desperately sought a way out of the field.

'_You have more strength in your little finger than it does in its entire body. You're the great Yuffie Kisaragi, right?' _She placed her hands on Yuffie's shoulders, she nearly fell into Aeris.

'_I cannot fight this…I nearly died last time.' _She paused again. _'I'm afraid I will fail and they will die because I couldn't fight. I'm not as strong as Vincent or Red. I'm just a girl; I'm just a child to them. What good can I do?' _

'_Harden your heart to the darkness inside, do not despair my child.'_ It was that presence again. Yuffie felt like screaming as she fell to her knees in sheer frustration.

'_I want to fight, I do! I'm too weak. If an immortal demon and a mako infused beast can't even do it how the hell am I supposed to be any good, huh? I'm just a human, I'm a clumsy human ninja, how can I help them!?' _She was livid now, how dare they just sit there and not help her. They know she can't do anything; they just taunt her with images of her friends suffering.

Just then, when she felt all hope was lost, her mothers materia lifted from her palm. She stared hard at the little ball, wishing her mother could somehow come out of it, hold her and tell her everything would be ok. Something just passed the orb caught her eye and all too late she saw the water rushing toward her. She gasped for a breath and braced for the wave to hit. The water roared as it rushed around her as some invisible barrier kept it from crushing her. Yuffie saw a woman, her long black hair fanned out around her as she floated just passed the massive wall of water. She wore a pale blue kimono, tied and worn in the traditional Wutainese fashion. She was beckoning to Yuffie. For reasons beyond her, Yuffie followed her right into the furious waters surrounding her.

* * *

_Ok, I don't know how many times I re-wrote this stupid long ass chapter…but it is finally done. I really hope you all like it, if not I'm terribly sorry…but I don't think I could re do it again if I wanted to. Stupid writers block!!_


	16. Eyes of God part 2

_A/N: Yay!! The dreaded writers block has lifted! I feel inspired once again. Glad you liked the last chapter. Special thanks to Sorceress Fujin, Azure Sora, The Reverse Edge Blade and Coquettish Siren and everyone else for your great reviews!! Enjoy!_

* * *

"Holy shit, fire in the engine room!" Cid called out from the helm.

"I'm shutting down engine one!" A crewman shot back.

Cloud, Tifa and Reno braced themselves as the airship lurched through the air. All at once it felt like floating as it started to fall out of the air. Cid cursed as he franticly hit buttons and re-calibrated the other engine to compensate. The airship leveled out, slowing its progress toward the ground only slightly. Godo stumbled in, following Elena, Tseng and Rude, who were still on the airship.

"Cap'n, we're losing altitude fast!" The crewman yelled over the roar of the storm.

"We've got to get that engine back online or we're done for!" Cid did his best to keep the Sierra airborne, not bothering to look away from the control panel as he spoke.

"Let's get outta here! We're no match for that thing!" Another crewman shouted, his voice was tense with panic.

"I'm not fucking abandoning them!" Cid furiously shot back at them. Both crewmen cringed at the tone.

Elena shoved her laptop on Tseng and turned toward the two crewmen. Tseng quickly grabbed a hold of her arm, preventing her from moving forward.

"I have to help; I can do this, Sir. I may be the only one here who can." She jerked her arm free.

"You are under orders to contain the situation, not play mechanic. Our responsibility is not to this…man." He replied coolly. Elena returned the stare with fierce determination.

"We can't contain anything if we're a pile of ash down there. Our responsibility is to fulfill the mission, which would include that _'man' _and his ship, so you can take that smug grin and your orders and shove them right up your ass! This _is_ my job, _Sir._" With that she turned on her heel toward the engine room hatch. Cid chuckled smugly as Elena spoke.

She shot a glance at the two crewmen, and moved to open the hatch. Reno jumped in, standing between her and the small hatch.

"I'm going with her." Reno said with a mischievous grin, Elena merely rolled her eyes in response. "Back before you know it, yo!"

"Well hurry the hell up!" Cid yelled as the airship lurched again, dodging a bolt of electricity from the malicious clouds. "We don't have too much time left..." he said solemnly.

Cloud glanced at the clouds outside and then to the others. "Well, we did tell Vincent we'd hold it off, right?" Tifa nodded and Barret threw his fist triumphantly in the air.

"Let's go! Just like the good ol' days, huh?" He laughed as he clapped Tifa on the shoulder. Rude followed Cloud and Barret out ahead of Tifa.

"Ha, I guess. Cid, we'll buy you some cover. Try to see if you can reach Vincent." Tifa tossed him her PHS. He caught it without turning away from the sky, nodding in reply.

"Hurry, they've been down there a long time. That cavern ain't gonna take much more" Cid spoke softly as she turned to leave, nodding as she went.

* * *

Vincent gasped for air beside Red, the creature had them pinned in a corner beneath the altar. 

"This one is considerably stronger than the one we fought in Wutai." Red observed.

"We are also considerably out numbered here." He glanced up, the ceiling above them cracked as a massive quake ripped through the cavern. "Yuffie hasn't moved…was she injured?" He shot a dark glare at the beast as it screamed in sheer, unbridled rage.

"I didn't see her get up after that last attack." Red said as he tossed a worried glance up to the altar. After the hag head had been silenced, Yuffie never returned to the fight. Something definitely didn't smell right, either. "Get up there…I will distract it."

"You are no match-"Vincent began, sure that the creature would destroy his comrade with one, well aimed attack.

"It wasn't a suggestion, Valentine!" With a fierce growl, Red launched himself forward once more. Vincent turned and made quick work of the stairs once again.

Red felt the energy around him, felt the familiar pull of his limit reaching its breaking point. He dodged the wings, the tail and the talons as he charged forward. _'For you, Yu.' _He summoned all his courage; closing his eyes as he pulled every ounce of strength and power into one final attack.

At the same moment, Vincent reached the top of the stairs to the altar Yuffie had fallen beside. He slid to a stop, she wasn't there.

'_Where is she? She was here only a moment ago…'_ He didn't have time to think as Red's 'Cosmo Memory' rocked the already fragile foundation of the cave.

He turned in time to see the deep red glow fade to as Red managed to avoid the creatures falling form. The attack had further damaged the leathery wings, the bones and muscles of the creatures now exposed back clearly visible from Vincent's vantage point.

Vincent felt the pulse deep within, the desire to let the four demons reek havoc was almost too enticing to pass up. 'Cerberus' was out in a moment, three shots echoing off the walls of the cave. He dropped gracefully to the ground, firing three more from 'Death Penalty' as he walked with grim determination toward the flailing beast. He stopped nearly six feet from the Hag's head, his face was devoid of any emotion, both weapons held level to her forehead. Rage boiling from somewhere deep inside, he hadn't felt this since the manifestation of Chaos within him. He was blind to everything now; he failed to notice the water pooling at his feet or the heat radiating from somewhere behind him.

* * *

'_How much do you love them?' _Yuffie felt as though she'd be crushed beneath the tremendous force of the water. _'How far will you go?' _Her mind reeled as the voice invaded her thoughts. What did they mean 'How far?' _'I'd do whatever it takes to save them!'_

She remembered her mother, maybe it was the cave and the being in such close proximity to her murderer. It struck her as odd that she would find Leviathan here, or answers to any of this for that matter. _'How far…is there a single task too great? A distance too far?' _She thought about it for a moment. She had no idea why she was here, what purpose she served in all this, after all it wasn't even really her that thing wanted. She felt empty and alone, trapped in some sort of limbo with no way to even help her friends. She felt utterly helpless, just like she was then…

When she was a child, when _he_ had come to her village, she had been the sole witness to what was to be one of the biggest cover-ups of that time, her mother's murder. Peace was forced under the threat of death. Godo, knowing very well what this would mean for his people, did the only thing he could do. He had given them everything so that they could survive; survive in the hopes that they'd one day take back what was theirs.

Yuffie remembered her mother and the General speaking alone one night. She had been the one to convince Godo that this sacrifice now would be repaid. It was merely a test from their God, a test of faith and will. Yuffie had been very small then, maybe five or six. She didn't quite understand what was happening, but she knew it was wrong.

'_This is no way to conquer your enemy. You are a coward!'_ Her mother was fiercely defiant, even to the strongest of Shin Ra's army. The silver haired General grinned down at her.

'_I can't say I completely agree, however this is the way it shall be done. If you do not comply, we will kill them. There is more at stake here than your petty concerns over how I choose to secure Wutai. Would you sacrifice your husband, your daughter…your __**God**__?'_ He had despised them, all of them, for worshiping a serpent of the sea. What good was it? It was a statue; he was alive and breathing, certainly more so than that ridiculous rock sculpture.

'_She is stronger than you think, General. She will rise up and destroy you and then we shall see how pathetic my __**God**__ really is. You have no idea what terrible fate awaits you,'_ she laughed, bitterly._ 'I almost pity you. So strong and yet you are nothing in comparison. You believe you will find your utopia in a black heart, a creature from the heavens that is no more than an illusion of grace and beauty. When you are faced with the truth of your existence you cannot even discern fact from fiction, you are not as strong as you imagine, child.' _Her voice was firm. Yuffie felt a sudden pang of fear and sorrow as she listened intently to what her mother said. Sephiroth's entire body tensed as she spoke, as if her whisper soft voice was causing him physical harm. _'There is indeed much more at stake here. We have made our choice; you will have your little victory. But at what cost?' _He paused a moment, forcing himself to come down from his rigid state.

'_I see no consequence for my actions.'_ He fixed those eerie aqua eyes on her, his lips twisting into a morbid mockery of a grin._ 'You are mistaken, Kisaragi-sama, that child will pose no danger to me.'_ He closed the distance between them. Yuffie felt her stomach drop to her knees as she watched Sephiroth bring a long, slender hand out toward her mothers face. She didn't blink or look away. She returned his dark grin without fear or malice; she was resigned to her fate.

He traced a finger along her jaw line, along the curve of her ear. Her eyes remained unchanged; she stood unflinching as he slowly brought his hand up to her well maintained bun.

'_My strength is unrivaled, my military genius unmatched. I am a hero, a __**God**__, Kisaragi.'_ He ripped her hair back, pulling her with it. She lay pinned beneath him; a slow smile was caught at the corners of her mouth. _'Such an insignificant child is no match for me, I will kill her.'_

'_He will protect her…as he always has.'_ She didn't scream or yelp as he proceeded to bring his fist down into her face as hard as he could, possibly breaking her jaw. Her eyes met his, defiant still.

'_But he will not protect you…' _Sephiroth replied with an icy tone.

'_Your values are corrupt, you follow a false prophet and you have no idea what it means to truly __**be**__ human. You cannot defeat her; even you, in all your might and glory, cannot destroy true innocence.'_ Her voice was barely a whisper, likely due to the damage to her face and jaw bone.

'_We shall see about that.'_ He cupped her chin, squeezing slightly, causing blood to flow more freely from the corners of her mouth. _'Good bye, lady Kisaragi.'_ He brought his hand back again, this time the intention was certainly to kill. Yuffie jumped, ready to bolt from her hiding place and protect her mother. Her heart froze as her mothers deep silver eyes locked onto her own. She smiled softly at her as she shook her head _No_; Yuffie felt hot tears pour down her cheeks. She shook her head vigorously. She would not stand by and let her own mother be killed, not by this monster masquerading as a man. She jumped up, moving silently to the window she'd been hiding just outside of.

There was a whisper on the wind; her heart hammering in her chest had caused her to nearly miss it. She turned to the night air; the moon was aglow with a faint aura. A ring had formed just around it, like a snake swallowing its own tail. _'Leviathan, save her please!'_ Yuffie held back a sob as she silently pleaded with her God. A breeze answered her, warm and inviting. It felt as though someone had been holding her, comforting her then. She looked back to the moon; it was the color of blood. She turned, watching in horror as he brought his fist down, she didn't hear the strike connect, her vision had gone white and her skin burned. _'Kaaasan!' _The roar of the sea swallowed her cry. The wind howled furiously, peeling shingles off the roof tops and causing the buildings themselves to fight to stay standing upright.

Something, a woman, wrapped their arms around her. The wind whispered to her heart as her mother lay still. Yuffie had never, until that moment, known how to hate. In the same moment she realized she'd never felt so much love and compassion from a single entity. She took a deep breath, crossing her hands over her heart as even more tears trailed down her now rosy cheeks. She could hear the sea pounding the cliffs of Da Chao, the wind howling threw the trees surrounding Wutai, she could even hear a faint whisper, a soft voice comforting her. _'My precious Yuffie, my dearest child, have no fear for I am with you, always. I shall be your light as you were mine.' _She felt something burn her chest, moving her hands back to inspect them she found a small, iridescent white orb.

'_Mother…'_ Yuffie felt herself forced back into the present. She turned her head upwards suddenly; the water instantly became a veil of soft, sweet smelling sakura petals. It reminded her of spring time and the festival of life.

'_What would you give of yourself, for them? What could you sacrifice? How far can you go, lady Kisaragi?' _Yuffie dried her eyes with the back of her hand. She stood, gazing at the up at something just beyond the petals that gently fell around her, a brilliant light behind them causing her to shield her eyes. She thought of Cid, fighting to keep the Shera up and in one piece. Cloud trying to fight the impossible, the TURKS, Rufus even, helping everyone out. Barret and little Marlene, how she would always hug Yuffie first and ask her to take care of her when Tifa couldn't, and Yuffie never turned her down. Nanaki, her only brother of sorts, his clever wit always kept her on her toes while is infinite wisdom kept her heart grounded. Reeve and Cait, she really did love that stupid robotic cat and Reeve, even if he did hide all the good materia from her. She felt a bit of sorrow when she thought of Aeris; she always wondered from where she had her incredible inner strength and drive to go on, knowing that she would die for them. _'Now I know…'_ Yuffie sucked in a breath, Tifa was her pseudo replacement for a mother. Her heart was warm and her smile was always kind, just like Yuffie's real mothers had been.

Vincent, how her heart ached for even just a glimpse of him, he was her heart made whole. She was amazed, and frightened, by her feelings for him. At the thought of them she knew what to do; she knew she'd follow in her mothers' foot steps, like Aeris had. Godo would be proud, if he could see her now.

'_I would sacrifice everything I am for even the barest thread of hope that they would live. I would give everything that I am for them.' _She smiled to herself as the familiar arms wrapped themselves around her shoulders.

'_We love you, little one.'_ She said, her ethereal voice echoing in the vast expanse of petals.

'_Kasan…'_ The world was white; heat pulsed through her as she felt her physical form fall away.

* * *

"Cloud!" Tifa screamed as Cloud dove in front of her, taking four bullets to the chest. "Cloud, no!" She dropped beside him, holding her hands over the wounds. He coughed, rivulets of blood trailing down his cheeks from the corners of his mouth.

Barret began firing again at the man, his red eyes glittering with delight as he dodged the gun mans attack. Tseng and Rude dove for him, using their combined strength to hopefully slow him down at least. Tseng moved in to strike at the clone, Rude coming up behind him. The clone grinned again and shot forward, his foot connecting with Tseng's chest. He used the momentum gained from that attack and launched himself toward Rude. Rude drew his gun in a flash, but the red eyed man was quicker. Tifa watched through blurry eyes as Rude fell back, blood pooling beneath him instantly.

"Rude! You son of a bitch!" Reno scrambled up to the top of the Sierra where they were fighting. His emerald eyes glowing angrily, his face twisted into a malicious glare.

Everything moved in slow motion. Reno running toward the dark version of Vincent, Tifa crying over Cloud as she fumbled with her 'Cure' materia and Rude, who now lay still beside Tseng.

There was a deafening explosion beneath the Sierra. Thick pillars of light shot through the ground and crater below, breaking through the clouds above. A roar came from below, a shrill cry of fear that was neither animal nor man. Vincent and Red appeared out of thin air, watching in slight awe and the battered form of the now two headed chimera came flying as fast as it could passed the Sierra. Something large and fierce closing in on it. The head of a dragon shot by, its serpentine body covered in beautiful, deep sea green and pearl white scales. The chimera didn't make it much farther as the dragons massive jaws clamped down with crushing force around the lower half of the creatures body. It tossed the chimera down to the planet like a rag doll.

The head itself was long and slender, thick whiskers like those on the koi in Wutai's sacred ponds gave it a rather regal appearance. The eyes were an image of chaos; dark, ominous, violent and yet strikingly beautiful, captivating orbs of brilliant mercury and sapphire.

The creature's size dwarfed the Sierra. It hovered without the aide of wings beside the airship, bellowing up at the storm. The clone laughed at the massive serpent.

"So you've finally figured it out, have you?" His gun fell from his hand and landed beside Vincent. "Now what will you do?" The dragon let out a near deafening roar in reply to his comment. "Big, stupid beast. You demons never learn." He smiled bitterly and cleared his throat. "I am him; I am the one who took your mother from you. I am the one who killed that scientist, the woman who gave birth to the plague of man. I killed the mighty king of the Shin Ra Empire, and I am the one who destroyed Jenova. The 'Calamity', as you call her, would not have been so easy to silence had I not intervened."

"You're wrong; it was Sephiroth's birth and the Jenova cells that killed Lucrecia. Jenova herself was stopped by the ancients long before you were here and it was Sephiroth's sword found in president Shin Ra." Tifa shouted back at him. "You're nothing but a clone of something better; you will never be anything but an empty shell!" Vincent immediately stood between her and the man in the air, silently cursing his new found 'do-gooder' attitude.

"I was standing beside her when she breathed her last, watching the life leave those beautiful eyes. I was created from a failure, an obsession. I am the truth behind those crimson eyes you all trust so dearly. I was the real experiment; Sephiroth was simply a bonus, a pawn even. When it became clear that Jenova's cells were too intelligent and powerful the original had been discarded for something more…impressionable." He watched the wine eyed brunette intently, waiting for her reply.

"…A clone." Tifa felt anger like white hot fire course through her. "You…y-you're…"Her face contorted to a look of mixed confusion, fear and resentment.

"Hojo? To some degree…yes. The cellular copy of none other than Vincent Valentine combined with the memories and genius of Hojo. But there is so much more that you can't seem to grasp. I am ancient, before his time or yours. Now that I'm finally free of that pathetic human, I can fulfill my own agenda."

"You killed a child to create the perfect weapon." She spat, still hugging Cloud's weak and battered form to her chest, not releasing her hold as he slowly regained consciousness. "You think by destroying an innocent you can achieve perfection? I…" She sucked in a breath. "I pity you, your life ends here. You should not have underestimated us."

"We're stronger than you friggin' think." Cid stepped up next to Tifa. "You come here, hurt my family and bang up my airship, I'll fuckin' kill ya." He adjusted his grip on his Venus Gospel.

"You have picked a terrible group to be on the wrong side of. We're not so easily _'silenced',_ if you catch my meaning." Reno cocked an eyebrow at the man. Rude slowly getting to his feet beside him, shaking off the effects of the phoenix down.

Lightning ripped through the sky as if the heavens above were splitting in two. The group of ten stood proudly; ready to fight for one another. The clone let a dark grin spread across his features.

"This shall be entertaining…" His malicious laugh pierced the night.

Tifa turned the group. "This is it; we're fighting for more than just our lives, now." The dragon roared at the clone, flying high into the clouds.

* * *

_Ok, sorry about the wait. I just started some crazy classes and working at a hospital. Hours are funky and my head is doing its own thing these days. I already have the next chapter in the works, it will answer all the questions I haven't yet…mainly, 'what the hell is going on here?!' Hope you like this one. It's hard to write these things solo :) I gotta find people to read, beg for ideas…anyways, thanks for reading. As always suggestions are more than welcome._


	17. Sacrifice

_Wow, it has been way too long since I've written. I apologize. School sort of stole my sole and work is trying to steal my body...gah. I never have time to even hear myself think. So, hope you like it. :) I went back and fixed up my time line as well so now it should have a better flow...maybe? Meh, this is why I don't make money off this. And no, still don't own them. Oh...but if I did...sigh...  
_

* * *

_Six months ago…_

_The familiar pitter patter of rain on the wooden roof of the dojo did little to put Yuffie at ease as it had in years past. It seemed to only reinforce her feelings of helplessness and sorrow. Tifa stood statue still and just as quiet as she watched the younger woman. Tifa, having known Yuffie for nearly a decade, had never seen her mood deteriorate to this before. She didn't know if she should slap her or hug her. Even after all Cid and Barret put her through, her resolve to remain cheery and keep her spirits up had always been a welcome relief to the rest of the group. Now she lay still, body and spirit broken by some unknown enemy. _

_Yuffie tilted her head toward Tifa, eyes slowly coming to rest on the older brunette. "The rain used to heal me." She stated flatly. Tifa winced at the hollow sound of Yuffie's voice. "Sometimes, I wonder if maybe they were right. My mother had been an incredible woman- a warrior, a ruler, and a lover. I have been none of those. Her qualities," She turned her stony gaze back to the grey outside. "they are not in me. I am neither ninja nor ruler."_

"_What about love?" Tifa whispered, unsure of her own voice._

"_Mm…I suppose I love my friends." She let out a bitter chuckle; Tifa felt a sudden pang of guilt. "Every last one of those bastards." The sudden anger startled Tifa, her eyes shot from her feet to Yuffie. The younger woman lay on her stomach, back to Tifa._

"_We-we do care, Yuffie. After you left so suddenly I worried something may have happened to you. Cid said you had a talk with Vincent and you were upset. Yuffie he didn't mean to, he feels aw-"_

"_Bullshit! He doesn't feel one goddamned iota of remorse for what he said to me!" Tifa was now face to face with one angry young woman. She couldn't remember ever seeing Yuffie move that fast. "You know, I put of with their shit day in and day out. Cloud treats me like a fucking child, you mother the unholy hell out of me, Cid tells me I'm shit and Barret goes right along with him. Reeve and his damn robotic cat nag me, even after I was there for Deepground, even after I helped save the world…TWICE! Nanaki is the only one I can talk to because Vincent is a social fucking retard! Don't tell me they feel __**sorry**__ for saying what they do. I know better. I am staying **here**; I don't need you, or any of them for that matter. Now excuse me if I don't show you the way out." Yuffie turned to walk away from Tifa and out the door leading to the now sodden gardens of the palace. Tifa, more out of instinct than anything else, shot an arm out to Yuffie and firmly took a hold of her by the wrist. Yuffie spun, ready to take a swing at the fighter holding her arm. Tifa would have been insulted any other time to see Yuffie raise a fist at her. This time, however, tears poured down her cheeks. Instead of striking Tifa, she dissolved into a fit of tears and sobs. Tifa reacted quickly, pulling Yuffie into a fierce hug._

"_I love you, Yuffie." She whispered with that sort of endearing grace that all mothers seemed to have._

* * *

The memory of a broken Yuffie gave Tifa strength. She had to fight for her, find her and bring her home. She loved her like she did Marlene and Denzel. The anger that welled up in her heart poured out of her in waves. _'What right does that…thing think it has to come and take her like that?!' _

Through the near deafening roar of the Sierra and the lighting tearing through the sky, Tifa clearly heard bells echoing. She felt the gentle push into action from somewhere deep within herself. She closed her eyes briefly, catching a glimpse of the flower girls smile. _'Bring her back, Tifa.'_

Cloud, Vincent, Barret, Cid, and Red fought tirelessly alongside the Turks and Yuffie's father. For all their collective might they could not inflict a single wound on the clone. He was too fast. They had very few phoenix downs and even fewer ethers to keep their materia sustained. Tifa stood watching it all as though she were a mere spectator. She felt her heart sink at the prospect of not being able to defeat the creature before her, none of them had the strength to even inflict damage. _'I can't save her this time. We are too weak.'_ With that as her last thought she gathered up all her courage and what remaining strength she had, prepared to die…expecting to in fact. She reached for a piece of the shattered phoenix materia, hoping that it could somehow give her guidance. Give them strength to fight this unknown evil. _'I wont give up on you Yuffie.' _Tifa closed her eyes, willing all her power to build to her most powerful limit. She felt it come and then surpass what even she knew to be her peak.

'_I wont give up on you, Tifa'_ Her field of vision narrowed, the scent of those little lilies Aeris loved so much nearly drowning her. Her every nerve was on fire, and the image before her was like watching a movie in slow motion. Cloud taking a swing at the incorporeal form of the clone, Vincent firing off a series of shots from both guns, Red closing his eyes in deep concentration as a series of materia lit up in his head piece, the Turks all taking point and firing with deadly accuracy, Reno grits his teeth in frustration as Rude loses his sunglasses. Tseng and Elena find themselves pinned down by a hail of bullets and raw electricity. The creature laughs maniacally, Cid and Barret coming from opposite sides, Barret firing a bolt of green energy and Cid using his own limit break, the white form of a dragon surrounding the pilots body and spear as he lances through the clone and causing no damage what so ever. Tifa clutched the orb to her chest, a single memory running through her head.

* * *

'_What does it really mean…sacrifice. I mean, do we just decide one day that 'Hey, I really dig these chumps so I'll go ahead and die for 'em.' Yuffie sighed in frustration as Denzel sat, asking one annoying question after another while she polished and sharpened Conformer. 'No Denzel, that isn't how sacrifice works. It…it just happens. You don't have a chance to make a decision really. You just know.' She turned to the boy and thrust a finger pointedly into his chest. 'When it hurts here to see them hurt, then you know it's the right time, then you know…' She closed her eyes briefly. 'Aeris knew…think of her.' He nodded in some sort of understanding. Tifa stood just outside the door, a single tear threatening to break free. 'Children know more than we think, huh?' Yuffie caught her off guard, those damned ninja senses._

* * *

She tightened her grip on the chunk of broken mako. _'Now is that time.' _She walked, purposefully, defiantly forward. Not a single one of them taking notice of her as she made her way up to Cloud and Vincent, walking right past them as if they were nothing. 

"I can't save her, but I can do my best to buy her more time. Whatever it is you want, she has it. This makes no sense, you just show up looking like Vincent. You try and kill my family, tell us we're unfinished business, talk about Jenova like she's alive. You know, we've stopped you and your kind three times already. Really…what's one more time? Life was getting a little too complacent there for a while." The energy was coming off Tifa in tremendous waves now. Radiant orange and red auras surrounded her, the frame beneath her feet crackling in pent up energy, alive with raw power. "We are stronger than you think, clone." She took a quick glance around at her friends and former enemies. "We have come together, friend and foe alike, for once purpose."

"And what is that?" the voice cackled back at her before answering its own question. "To put an end to me? Kill me, if you can. I am but one small piece in the grand scheme of things. My death with her sacrifice will bring about her rebirth. Your pathetic, moralistic, _human_ minds could not understand our purpose. Life is meaningless…death brings rebirth, this world must be cleansed!" His voice was dark and twisted. It sounded so far gone form the Vincent they knew.

"You will not succeed. We will prevail, we are stronger than you give us credit for." Tifa replied, a sort of finality settled over her. _'I have faith in you, Yuffie Kisaragi.' _

Tifa's entire body was engulfed all at once in flames of orange, red, white and blue hues. The fire soared impressively a moment and then sucked back into itself. There was a sudden silence as the remaining group watched in horror and fascination as a sudden explosion came from where Tifa had been. A green flame erupted from the spot she had recently vacated, a creature much like the phoenix taking form briefly before the fighter reappeared, her fist held high as if to strike the core of the clouds and clone alike. The clone had a moment to blink, something like fear shinning in it's eyes.

"YOU CAN NOT STOP US!" It screamed in pure, unrestrained horror and rage as the fighter struck and he too was engulfed in the fire that was once Tifa Lockheart. A primal scream left her lips, ending in a roar that sounded nothing like the woman inside the fire. There was a brilliant flash and then ashes and burning embers swirled violently around Tifa as she stood apart from the rest of the group, eyes closed and body burnt. She opened her eyes, they burned as if fueled by the very fires of Hades.

"For now…I can." She whispered as her body crumbled to ground. Cloud was the first to reach her, her skin burning him even through the thick gloves he wore. "The time was then…I had to. I am so sorry, my love." Her fire red eyes closed one last time, her face marred by black soot and a multitude of scratches and burns all varying in degrees of damage done. Cloud turned his eyes to the clouds, still black as pitch. A single entity remained in those clouds and if there was any God at all on there side it was fighting for them now.

"Don't leave us, Tifa. Just hang in there…We'll bring you and Yuffie back. I promise." Cloud closed his eyes, firmly set in his resolve to stand and fight once again for those that he loved.

Vincent stood just ahead of the group now surrounding Tifa. He watched carefully, his demon eyes able to see exactly what was happening in the core of the storm. _**'It is time to act. I admit I was surprised by that human's…sacrifice, but there is a greater evil lurking and we must eradicate it before she awakens.'**_ Vincent nodded, he flexed his claw a few times experimentally. _'I am prepared…I submit.' _With that Vincent was gone, Chaos soaring faster than the human eye could see toward the wicked red eye of the storm.

* * *

_Ok, it's been a very long time. Sorry this is so short, I actually wrote it today based on some stuff I came up with at work. Let me know how you like it or don't like it. Any constructive criticism or compliments are always welcome. Thanks, Ave. _


	18. Silver Ashes

_HA! I finally got some sleep so I fixed this chapter...I don't think it's going to be any less confusing...but I'll try. So, hope you like it now ;) And thanks for the feedback! I love you guys -Ave  
_

* * *

Yuffie didn't know how long she'd been sleeping, she did know she didn't want to wake up though. The air was cool against her skin, it smelled sweetly of flowers. She shifted lazily in her bed, blankets wrapped haphazardly around her waist. A long yawn tore itself from her as she slowly blinked awake. The sun was just beginning to peak through the heavy curtains, casting crimson shadows along the walls. 

'_Was it all a dream? Just a long, horrible dream.'_ Yuffie propped herself up on her elbows. She felt something heavy and warm lying across her lap. She moved the sheets and blankets, digging to find the mysterious item. _'An arm? Whose arm is this?' _She blinked at it a few times, the pale skinned, well muscled arm suddenly gripping her thigh and thus pulling her closer to its owner. She followed it slowly to it's source. The body was still covered in the blankets, which she slowly lifted.

"Vincent!" She yelped as he rolled away from her shrill yell, sending her up and over him and right to the hardwood floor. She landed with a thud, the room grew fuzzy for a moment, seeming to shift out of focus for a moment and then came back. She could swear she heard voices coming from the walls or outside. They were yelling her name, calling for help. They sounded terrifying and horrible. Something was indeed not right, and if the low growl coming from the bed was any indication as to just what was going on, then it must be something bad.

She jumped to her feet, tearing out of the room and down the stairs of the mansion. _'What the fuck is going on? Where am I?' _She ran to the kitchen, nearly knocking Tifa to the ground as collided with her.

"Tifa Tifa!! Something bizarre is going on, we have to get...why do you have a knife?" Yuffie didn't exactly realize the implication of the older woman lifting a large butcher knife until she'd actually said it aloud.

"Yuffie, what are you doing?! This is no time for _**playing**_!" Tifa hefted the butchers knife above her head, a look of sheer madness coming from her wine eyes, dark circles beneath them making her that much scarier to the young woman in front of her. "_You must die_, _**KISARAGI!**_" Tifa's voice became a shrill screech, sounding like nails on a chalk board or grinding metal. Yuffie felt the color drain from her face as all the air left her lungs in one horrified scream. She turned and ran the way she came, heading through the dinning room and back into the living room. She smelled the smoke before she saw the pilot.

"_**Hey, y'fuckin little bitch!**_" Cid stood blocking her exit, spear in hand, his pale face and darkened blue eyes filled with some mysterious rage. Yuffie felt a cold sweat break across her forehead and her body went numb with fear.

"Cid! What the hell are you doing? It's me…YUFFIE!" She screamed, dodging his spear only by a hair. "Cid, please!" He lunged for her, a hungry glare taking over his features as he eyed her now exposed thighs. She felt her stomach knot up as he advanced. She kept backing away, tears pouring down her cheeks. "Gods, please…please, Cid. Don't do this!" She sobbed openly. A dark, throaty chuckle left his mouth, the corners of his lips twisting into a malicious grin.

"_**Fucking little whore…bitch, I'll take y'fer a ri-ide"**_ He drawled, his voice sounded dark and deep, unlike the angry, carefree Cid she knew.

He closed in on her, hands outstretched and hungrily seeking her tender flesh. She took another step back, hitting something warm and firm.

"You…you are mine, Yuffie Kisaragi." That voice seemed unchanged, it couldn't be though. Not him, not Vincent. _**"Your flesh is MINE!!"**_ She nearly died right there. Her heart breaking into a thousand pieces as a mangled claw nearly tore threw the soft skin of her left thigh. Cid's callous hands began roaming freely over her arms and neck.

The scream that left her could have shattered worlds and woken the dead. She clamped her eyes them shut to block out the horrible sensation.

She felt something cold and wet slide across her face, her eyes immediately flew open in raw terror. She met Cid's ice blue stare, suddenly realizing she was no longer in the mansion and he was no longer touching her. He was talking but she couldn't seem to hear him. Slowly she lifted a hand to her cheek and withdrew it, examining whatever it was on her face. _'Blood…'_ Yuffies eyes shot heavenward, a blood red sky. The clouds seemed to be repelled by some unseen force here, forming an oval like shape. The wind stopped now and she could smell something awful. _'Death.' _Yuffie turned to look at whatever it was Cid saw, since it clearly wasn't her. Tifa lay scattered across the deck of the Sierra, blood and bits making a mockery of her former beauty and strength. Cloud was overcome by that same strange madness she'd seen from the former fighter, Cid, and Vincent. His mouth opened and Yuffie could only assume he was roaring at the sky. She tasted something bitter and suddenly her stomach emptied itself of its contents. Yuffie could not seem to tear her eyes away from the gruesome sight before her and collapsed, unable to breathe, in a heap, unseen at Cid's feet.

'_This isn't real, it can't be real, Tifa's not dead…not like this.' _She couldn't seem to slow her breathing down, she felt her stomach knot up and retched again. Slowly she stood, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. She didn't know whether she'd vomit again or scream, the scene before her was so completely unreal.

"This can't be…this can't be, it can't, it can't…This-"She nearly fell over as the ship shook violently.

'_Yuffie…'_ A distinctly feminine voice echoed through her mind.

"Where are you? What the _**FUCK**_ is going on?!" Yuffie shrieked furiously at anyone who might have been listening. The world around her went black suddenly and she felt her stomach knot up again. She whimpered pitifully, curling herself into a ball.

'_There's no more escape…We are forsaken.' _Her mother's voice rang clearly through her mind. She closed her eyes again, focusing on her voice. She felt the world shift beneath her again. Yuffie didn't look up or move, but for some reason she felt the urge to sing her mothers song.

"Today is the end of tomorrow…" She began, her voice hoarse and barely above a whisper. "There's no time anymore, life will pass us by, we are forsaken…" Yuffie let her eyes open slowly as a steady warmth began to fill her heart. A woman knelt before her now; she wore a traditional Wutanese Kimono, an iridescent pale blue. Her eyes were a beautiful steel grey and her hair was held back in a simple bun held up by a pin designed to look like Leviathan.

"Why are you doing this?" Yuffie felt a strange, unwelcome emotion building within her. "Why are you doing this?!" She demanded a second time without waiting for a response, her fists balled up angrily at her side.

The woman lifted her steely gaze to Yuffie, her mouth forming a sweet smile and Yuffie immediately regretted what she was accusing her of. "I know this must be hard, dear one, believe me I do. I am forced to sit and watch you suffer these false realities. They nothing more than illusions, mirages…pay them no mind! It is trying, with all its might, to destroy your mind. You have to be strong now." Her voice was as beautiful as she remembered. Yuffie felt her mind slipping again, she felt herself falling away from her mothers visage. Her eyes filled with fear, her smile however remained soft and sweet. "Be brave, little one..." Her mothers voice echoed in the darkness.

"What…what do I do? Why is this happening? I'm scared…" She curled back around her knees again, filled suddenly with that terrible, gut wrenching fear she'd felt in the mansion. Her heart hammered furiously against her chest as though it would break free at any moment. She focused all her thoughts back to her mother, fervently searching for anyway back to her.

"Yuffie…do you remember? When you were small, do you remember how the story went?" She could only hear her mother now, blackness surrounded her-threatening to swallow her into its deep, dark abyss. "He was in search of a power greater than all others, a power to rule the world with. He did slay demons, dragons, and even God's to find it. He built a vessel from the bones and flesh of his fallen enemies."

'_The Ark, the Hell Bringer,' _Yuffie sucked in a ragged breath. _'The materia…' _The realization that began to dawn on her was more terrifying than she had ever thought possible.

"The ship became his soul, giving him the power he sought after. It hungered for the very thing he desired...slowly building it's power to be greater than his. He conquered those summoned by the planet, the _'Ark'_ drew in the _'Calamity from the skies'_ drawing her attention from universes and galaxies away. He brought her here, drawing out the planets strongest protectors, the sole guardians of all that she was."

'_The ancients…'_ Yuffie felt hot tears flowing freely, her eyes still firmly shut in fear and anger. _'The depleted materia.'_

"He used the one called Jenova to destroy them, he filled man's head with a lust for power. He lifted him up only to tear him to the ground." Yuffie felt soft arms wrap around her shoulders, drawing her in. "He gave him knowledge of an ancient evil, and men did fail her."

'_ShinRa…Lucrecia, and Aeris, the whole project was because they simply "discovered" Jenova. So, he must have given Hojo the knowledge, who in turn filled President ShinRa's head with lies.' _

"She carried the first of his creations; the first success was to be a failure as the minds of men are weak and foolish. Man created the son to be in his image, not in the way the One had desired. Men grew wise, creating an army of silver and ash. They were soldiers once…long before the age of blood."

'_Sephiroth' _She paused, realizing all along just how obvious this had been. Cloud _had_ let Yuffie take the materia and something had indeed gone wrong...she just didn't know it until now.'_Deepground, they had been locked beneath Midgar after the first catastrophe.'_

"The last true heir of the planet dead, her body and soul now one with the planet, her killer following her to the hollow grounds of eternity only to be forced back, and the woman, her body now frozen in mako, was of no use to him. She could bear no further genetically perfect bodies; the ones left behind would have to suffice. The one who holds your heart was drawn to this pit of darkness. The innocent were slaughtered to make way for the vile. The greatest of her guardians was to be risen from its eternal slumber. The last survivors who stood at the very mouth of Hell, fought once again."

'_Omega…it's been causing this the whole time? This…this power hungry summons is the cause of…'_

"Oh…sweet Leviathan! How could we not see it before? How…I have to find Cloud or Tifa…I have to get back." She spoke softly, frantically to herself.

"So now you see,now you understand, your once great treasure has brought a fate worse than any death to be suffered by man." Her mother released her. "Your body has been destroyed to release the guardian." Her mothers body began to blur, a strange heat emanated from her kneeling body. "You will be on borrowed time." the heat grew to a near intolerable degree and she was suddenly engulfed in a blue flame. "Fight well, together you can defeat this. No evil is without its weakness. All things dark must submit to the light." The fires swallowed Yuffie whole, burning her from the inside out. She opened her mouth to scream and was overtaken by a sudden darkness.

'_This is not the end, child.' _She could feel her mother slipping away from her, her heart cried out, desperately trying to hold onto any single part of her, trying to keep her close. _'I will be with you…'_

* * *

Chaos had relented complete control of his strength, body, and all the power within him to Vincent. He flew through the air, a single thought running through his mind. _'Kill…'_ It had been nearly forty years since he last felt that urge to commit to any act of violence with such fierce determination. He was closing the distance quickly between he and the burning eye of the storm. In their respective souls they knew this evil, this was so disturbingly familiar it nearly caused Vincent to stop mid-flight. 

There was a blinding flash; the silver dragon appeared beside him, eyes burning furiously as they closed in together. Suddenly, the cause of the blinding light was before them. There, hovering without any sort of aide, was Yuffie. Her hair cascading around her shoulders, creating an eerie effect on the woman, she lifted her silver gaze to Vincent's golden one.

She spoke slowly, her voice echoing through the clouds. "It is the Hell Bringer, created by the fallen corpses of those who stood to oppose it, made to destroy and rule all creation. The dark one, an ancient evil so terrible the planet condemned it to an eternity of servitude in the form of a summon, not fully capable of permanently sealing it away."

The dragon roared, soaring past Yuffie's fading form. Chaos hovered a moment longer, regarding the ninja carefully.

"_It is the one called 'Ark' a chimera of metal, flesh, and bone."_ The demonic voice of Chaos sounding more like growling and gnashing teeth than talking.

Before Yuffie could respond her body began to dissipate. "I was only able to stay for a moment. Fight now, fight for the planet…we are with you, Vincent…" She smiled her Yuffie smile, "I'll be watching over you…" With that she faded completely.

Vincent's resolve was strengthened, more so than before. _'I fight for you as well, Yuffie.' _The roar of Leviathan reached his ears, the final battle had begun. Somehow knowing it was for her made him want to fight that much more, even though he was sure he'd not see her in this life again.

* * *

At that same moment an identical image of Yuffie hovered above the Sierra, looking down at a badly marred Tifa. She was alive, albeit just barely, but alive nonetheless. Realization dawned on the blond swordsman as he watched Yuffie's body, engulfed in flames, vanish. Godo swore to watch closely over Tifa, swore they'd both be alive when he returned, he told the swordsman to fight for him…for his beloved daughter. Sad as it was that Yuffie may never come back to them, it gave them the strength to fight back, as if somehow this made it easier. The Turks standing proudly beside Cloud and his team of hero's as they made their way after Vincent on the Sierra. Cid swore he'd build a new airship after this, name it after his wife…or even their child. Cloud promised Tifa a life of love and devotion that he couldn't have given her before. Nanaki would build a monument to the three most powerful and beloved women of their lives, to honor the fallen and celebrate their victories. Barret promised to take Marlene to Wutai and work less so he could see her grow up. With a final glance to Godo and Tifa, Cloud sent everyone in the direction of the demons eye, toward _'Ark'_ and their destiny.

* * *

_A/N...yeah, not much better, huh? Well the next chapter is up...um, good luck? Lol, thank you to all my reviewers!  
_


	19. Hope of the Fallen

_Yay for long chapters. I had an idea stuck for weeks and two two or three days writing this chapter. I hope it isn't too cliche or sappy. But it's done and up and I hope you guys like it a little bit. -me :)_

* * *

The next several hours had been the most trying and horrible of anyone who had the misfortune of being at the Northern Crater that day's life. They fought and fought, failure looming ahead in the form of dark, blood red clouds staining the heavens. 

In their final hour, when all effort seemed to have been wasted, they gave all they had in one last attack…

"_Cloud, behind you!" Barret shouts, firing at the blond to emphasize the danger. He nods back at the gunner in thanks, proceeding to launch himself toward the eye. A series of foul smelling, hideous black winged lizards fell from the clouds like rancid, black rain. Letting their sickly wings carry them to the hero's aboard the Sierra. They were three times the size of a chocobo, but still smaller than a grand dragon. _

"_This is fucking hopeless!" Reno roars over the gunfire behind him, attacking the small fell drake before him with deadly accuracy. His baton now covered in a sticky black substance and rendered useless, fell to his side as he produced two handguns._

"_We have to keep trying, there has to be a way to stop this thing!" Cloud calls in an effort to boost moral. He silently prays for any help anyone out there could give them. "We cannot back down now. Not when we're this close to-" He's cut off by an explosion at the helm of the Sierra. Two of the fell beasts have collapsed, dead, and their bodies have melted into her engines. She's going to crash and they cannot fly. _

_An inhuman roar above them alerts them to Chaos's presence. He watches with what may have been mistaken for sorrow as the Sierra fights to stay in the air._

"_Fuck 'em, we end this now!" Cid produces one of the very few summon materia left to them. Bahamut ZERO. Cloud nods his head; it may be their only hope. Since they found the 'Ark' there had been very few intact summon materia to be found, at least by Yuffie. But if she can't find them then something must have happened to them. "I know's fuckin' risky, but what other fuckin' option y'all got?!" His accent really came out when he was either mad as hell or nervous. Cloud would assume it was both, he felt the same way after all._

"_Alright! Everyone, equip any summon materia you have and activate them on my count!" It was harder to hear anyone now; the engines were screaming defeat as the beasts and clouds alike roared victory and death. _

_Barret pulled his Shiva from a charm hanging around his neck that Marlene had made for him in school not too long ago, and Ifrit from a small pouch Yuffie had made for him after meteor ('Well, where else would you put all your materia? In your pocket?) He smiles to himself, remembering how embarrassed she'd been just because he'd said he really liked it. She'd branded the bag with a gun like the one on his arm. He turns to watch and wait._

_Rude equipped both Ramuh and Ifrit. Reno had somehow managed to hang onto Vincent's Phoenix materia and his own Odin through the whole ordeal. Elena equipped Alexander to her gun and turned toward Cloud, tossing him a W-Summon materia. Rufus and Tseng eye one another, they both produce a summon each, Hades and Choco/Mog…Rufus smiles at himself for only keeping the one with him. It was a gift from Reeve, a sort of joke between the two men. "Strength isn't always being bigger and more terrifying than the last guy, Mr. ShinRa," Reeve would say, "Sometimes it's soft, fluffy…and maybe even just a little cute once in awhile." While the summon was actually pretty useless, he figures it couldn't be any worse than just standing there with a shotgun looking like a fool in that white jacket. Tseng tsks the man and equips his vastly superior Hades. Rufus shrugs and walks to meet Cloud, who is now surrounded. He's equipped his Knights of the Round and Elena's mastered W-Summon. With a quick look he smiles at everyone, the engines begin to seize and shudder and thus make sure he gets to the point before she hits the hillside. The fell dragons appear to be frightened of the noise the vessel makes, or maybe it was the noxious fumes spewing from her where their comrades have ceased to exist. _

"_We summon as one, it can't possibly defend itself from every summon at once, but it may absorb some of them." Cloud warns, the group nods collectively. "On my count, agreed?" Again they nod. "See you on the ground, then." He turns to Barret and Cid and says something he hasn't said in years. "Let's mosey." All three burst into laughter and in turn walk toward the edge of the dancing airship. Nanaki flees to the lower decks to retrieve Godo and Tifa, he agrees to get them to the surface before the ship falls. The crew are panicking but refuse to leave until Cid threatens them with a fate worse than the thing in the sky could ever dream of giving them. The crew take the fire cat, Tifa, and a very ill looking Godo to the ground. The next five minutes are the most amazing anyone of them would ever see._

_Cloud goes first, setting 'Knights of the Round' into action; as he begins the others follow his lead. Soon the sky would be filled with lights and explosions, or so they thought. Each summon appears, none attack. The eye seems to shift toward them, it appears to notice what is about to happen…the hillside suffers its wrath; the Sierra shudders and finally begins to plummet toward the ground. The team, however, hover in mid air as if it were natural. They are transfixed by the scene before them. _

_Bahamut ZERO is the first to act, soon two similar dragons are flanking him. A roar, no words, comes from his heavy jaws. Ramuh raises his staff, Ifrit and Phoenix become one and the fire they create would rival that of the sun itself. All the others prepare their respective attacks, all except the Choco/Mog, it comes in the form of a dozen, giant white chocobos and moogles, all with bandanas around their forehead, hoisting one or two people onto their backs, they would bolt for the ground. The moogles mumble "This won't end well, this wont be good, kupo-o." And they aren't far from the truth. _

_Every summon collected would soon be joined by the demon Chaos and a true God, Leviathan himself. He had been freed of he bonds of summoning by the sacrifice the girl had made for him. He would be bound to honor her blood, and until the 'Ark' was back where it belonged, he would not rest. _

_Four mighty Dragon Gods lifted their heads and let loose a firestorm not seen by anything living on Gaia in many centuries. It was spectacular and horrible, it tore threw the great eye, soon followed by real lightning, fire burning so hot it turned the fell dragons to dust and silver ash. Alexander stood, a man once more, raising his mighty sword with the Knights of the Round. Together they worked, attacking and blocking until the great Hell Bringer's mighty, impenetrable armor did finally crack. All manner of summon held their own against the dark forces of the Ark. A voice rings out as the eye begins to disintegrate into a ball of black, horrible tendrils of energy. _

'_**I am not defeated…'**__ And Cloud stands below the spectacle, fully aware that what was spoken may be truth. He clenches his jaw, willing with all his might to see his family returned to him safely. He suddenly misses Marlene and Denzel as one might miss their heart or lungs, had they been removed. _

_Chaos is all that remains, he and the dark orb that is 'Ark'. Cloud almost hears when Vincent is thinking and silently tells the Gunman he'd kill him himself if he dares to tempt him. There is a moment of pure silence; the sky is returning to its somewhat normal shade of grey, the trees for possibly two miles are now nothing more than ash and char. It is devastating to Cloud, as he glances around; there is still so much death on the battle field. He waits for Chaos to land, eyeing the tree line as he does so. A shimmer of something gold and green catches his eye, he stares harder and is thankful for once to have such enhanced eye sight. If not for his mako eyes, he would not have seen the boy with silver hair and pale green eyes, the brunette with piercing emerald depths standing behind him her hands gently caressing the sides of his head and sweetly combing through his long locks, or the massive and ancient golden chocobo standing beside them both-eyes all but grey with age. He would have missed that smile she sent him, and the nod she gave toward the heavens. At her bidding he looks and is almost beside himself with joy at what he sees, which for him had always seemed near impossible to feel. _

"_You're home…" He mutters, Cid standing beside him glances up, a similar look of excitement taking hold; soon everyone present began cheering at the clouds above, smiles bright and shining._

* * *

Yuffie resigned herself to the silent whiteness of the horrible limbo she was to be confined to. It had been passed down, through every generation of the Kisaragi line, the blood of the dragon God, Leviathan…and with it his curse. Yuffie's mother had allowed herself to be the sacrifice, she had allowed a deranged Sephiroth kill her. Her God had not come to save her though, Yuffie sucked in a bitter breath. _'He stopped me from coming to rescue you…' _She glared at her knees, resenting herself for remembering such a thing now. _'Some God he turned out to be…just a giant lizard. Figures I'd go rush into this and get everyone else killed in the process.'_ She sighed to herself. She felt guilty for speaking so badly of her God. 

"I'm sorry…" She tried to speak but found she had no breath to do so, she wasn't breathing at all. She found only her thoughts could be heard here. _'I'M DEAD!' _She panicked and looked around franticly for any sign she may be wrong. Yuffie grabbed her own wrist hoping to find a pounding pulse…_'Nothing?! What the hell is going on!?' _

'_You're not dead.' _Yuffie spun around, nearly jumping out of her skin with joy at the sight of the lilies._ 'The church seems a bit run down; I think it needs a new roof.'_ Yuffie grins stupidly at Aeris now, thankful for any company at all, forgetting her earlier dilemma of having no heart beat and not breathing. _'And my flowers need to be taken care of…look, there are…weeds!' _Aeris glowered at the tiny sprouts of what could only be the very bane of her existence…Dandelions.

'_Marlene'll pluck 'em when we get back. She usually does…'_ Yuffie glanced to the roof. It was almost completely gone. One of the main supports of the church had been knocked over and thus created an even larger hole than the original one. _'Maybe we should just rebuild the whole thing? I mean…it's kinda torn up, don't cha' think?' _Yuffie glanced back to Aeris, standing slowly to go and stand near the whole in the floor where her flowers grew. The church was a mess, dilapidated wooden planks hanging on by the moss growing on them.

'_I suppose it is getting old,' _she turned to Yuffie, smiling brightly. _'Would you do it for us?' _ She turned to look at something behind Yuffie. Yuffie catching the hint slowly, turned to see what the ancient was staring at.

A man stood there, or at least from his size and the way he carried himself Yuffie assumed it was a man. He had long silver and white robes one, beneath was a kimono of the purest blue silk, the design looking suspiciously like scales. His hair was long, flowing around his feet like water, partially tied back to keep the upper portion out of his eyes. He looked every bit the war hero the great Da Chao Mountains had been named for.

'_I have no further need of you, Kisaragi-chan.' _The voice was deep and heavily accented…like it wasn't truly his nature to speak, Yuffie was too confused and overjoyed to really pay attention to little details. Like the tail swishing behind him, or the way his eyes were slits like a snakes eyes, or even the guttural growl coming from him at her lack of verbal response.

'_What do you mean? What happened…'_ her face fell suddenly. _'Am I going to die now? Since I called the Dragon…I have to…'_ It was as if the world had simply jumped up and down and crushed Yuffie. Without any consideration of her, just up and destroyed all her hopes and dreams.

'_No. The sacrifice has been given, you are free to go.'_ His voice was devoid of any good emotion. In fact, he sounded almost angry that she didn't follow what he was saying.

'_Yuffie, your mother...' _Aeris whispered, placing her hands on the slight ninja's shoulders. _'It's time for you to go now.'_ Yuffie turned to Aeris with one last questioning glance. _'Don't forget those horrible weeds'_ Aeris smiles at her, Yuffie turns back to the warrior at the other end of the church. With a single nod the man standing before her lifted a hand, palm extended toward her. She noticed then that they were talons, not hands, that he was regal…not horrible. Her heart does skip a beat then, his eyes glint and Yuffie sees the smallest of smiles grace his hardened features and then disappear as quickly as it came.

'_Le-Leviathan!' _It was her last thought before she felt all the air viciously forced back into her small frame, her heart hammering tremendously against the confines of her ribcage, and gravity suddenly kicking in full force. She felt like she was falling, and she felt like she'd been doing it for a little long to just be a dream. She opened one eye to see what just happened.

* * *

"OH SHIT!!" She screamed aloud as the ground came rushing up to greet her. Something sharp took a hold of her ankle and she felt her whole body being jarred by the force. She looked up to see Chaos, claw firmly holding her and a smile…or at least she hoped that grimace was supposed to be a smile. "Nice catch." She shouted up at him, clearly out of breath. He grinned wider and let the ankle go, quickly grabbing her arm. 

"_**Hold tight, princess.**_" The demon managed to growl out. They flew faster than Yuffie had ever gone in her life…ever. She couldn't even breathe, and her skin burned. Apparently sensing her distress the creature slowed down.

The sky was grey, cloudy…but there were no terrible winds or wayward bolts of lightning coming from the sky. There was also no Sierra and very little of the crater left. A thought suddenly burning Yuffie from her ears to the tips of her toes, her heart hammering in her chest as she frantically scanned the wreckage for any sign of life. She could make out small bits of the airship that lay obliterated along the side of the crater. There was a new crater now, it looked to be nearly two miles wide from where Yuffie and Chaos were and she could make out dots moving around.

"_**Yes, they survived…even the brunette.**_" He sounded a little disappointed there. And Yuffie openly stared up at him. "_**She is badly wounded.**_" He growled down at her.

"Tifa was hurt?! What happened…hey! Where did the big baddie go?" Yuffie wriggled about in Chaos's grip to see more of the sky.

"_**Here…**_" In his palm was an obsidian orb, crackling with rage, an ancient evil now trapped safely inside. He placed the orb to his leather bound chest; there was a strange sound, like flesh tearing as the orb was slowly absorbed back into his body.

Chaos descended on the group, who watched in shock and horror as he doubled over. His body trembled violently and his outline became suddenly blurry. Yuffie leapt away for fear of being smacked by a tail or wing. Chaos roared and at the same moment his head looked like it had split, a fuzzy image of Vincent's head appeared beside Chaos's more prominent one. _'They are splitting apart, again.' _Yuffie thought to herself. She vaguely wondered if this was what happened last time Chaos left him. Chaos and Vincent both fought for their freedom, each howling in pain. There was a white flash and then there were two bodies. Chaos crouched over Vincent's fallen form, nudging him lightly with his tail. At Vincent's groan the demon ceased, turning to Yuffie instead. He didn't speak but the command had been given and she quickly found herself at Vincent's side. She felt it, the raw power that was the demon formerly trapped within him. She couldn't hide her feelings of awe toward him; demon or not he was still incredibly powerful.

"Chaos…I-"He lifted his one golden eye to her silver, standing fully up to his true height. His form was not the same without the human body to wrap it around. He stood eight, maybe nine feet tall, and looked more animalistic, back hunched and massive horns protruding from the sides of his pale head. He had a cloak like Vincent's, so dark it absorbed what light dared to touch it. She looked closer, noticing that it wasn't a cloak at all…they were his wings. She shuddered a little, recovering her resolve again quickly.

'_**It is done…'**_ He regarded her a moment before grinning maliciously at her, letting his vanity get the better of him, clearly enjoying the open admiration she had for him. She didn't flinch; she retuned his stare with one of her own. She was clearly concerned for Vincent and suddenly it was as if Chaos almost wasn't there at all…almost. She turned her attention back to gunman in question quickly when he let out another pained moan and shifted. Yuffie glanced one last time up to the monstrous creature before her, her eyes turning dark and fierce.

"That is the last time _you_ touch him." She spoke defiantly and fearlessly. The demon bared his teeth, Yuffie stood stoically between Vincent's body and Chaos. "The _**very**_ last time." There was an edge to her voice even the demon was slightly surprised to hear, but then it wasn't entirely unexpected either.

'_**Hm…it seems you are not as weak as I had thought.' **_Chaos turned and let his wings stretch to their full length. _**'As you command, highness, he is yours to do with as you please.'**_ He growled out, voice thick with sarcasm. Yuffie, despite the fear she'd felt a moment ago, smiled to herself.

'_It's over, it is finally over…' _She bent beside Vincent, helping him to his side and then to prop him up a little straighter. He must have stared at her, unblinking, for a full minute. She smiled finally, reaching out to brush a wayward lock of hair out of his eyes. "Hey there, stranger…" She whispered to him, watching his lips move but no sound coming out. She raised an eyebrow in question.

"You lived…" He finally managed, still not truly able to come to grips with Yuffie sitting before him. She didn't really look like the old Yuffie. Her hair had grown a little and her eyes held the barest of iridescent glows. She looked older and wiser somehow. "You…you lived through the cave, and the-"His voice was ragged and husky. Yuffie placed a delicate finger over his mouth, successfully stopping him from going any further. It was his turn to raise an eyebrow in question. She smiled in reply and did the last thing he expected. She kissed him, forcefully at first. One inhaling the other.

"YUFFIE!" It was the sound of a thousand voices at once; startled, she turned sharply to the sound, still staying close to Vincent. Cloud, Barret, and Cid rushed to her side and hefted Vincent up to a standing position. Cloud helped Cid cart Vincent toward the space the group was reassembling. Barret hoisted her up over his shoulder in a less than dignified manner.

"HEY! Put me down, I'm a princess, not a tote bag… Drop me or I'll kill you, Barret!! Oh for the love of Leviathan!" They laughed all the way over to the group. Godo sat smiling beside a weary Tifa, still a bit feverish and weak…but smiling at Yuffie all the same. Yuffie managed to wriggle free of Barret's firm grip and dove for Tifa, she was horribly burnt and from what Yuffie could tell, barely holding it all together.

"She's going to be fine, she's badly burned and has a fever from exhaustion, but otherwise she's going to make it." Elena spoke softly, quickly examining Tifa once more. "But we had better hurry; she really can't survive with these burns for long. Infection will set in and then there's real trouble" Yuffie impulsively hugged Elena who guffawed at the sudden contact.

"Well, Sierra's fuckin' gone. The chocobos are still too spooked to come near any of us, any ideas?"

Yuffie glance to the top of the crater, a sudden disturbance knocked some rocks loose. The group turned to see a large black Chocobo come limping out of the distance. "VALENTINE!" She bolted for the injured bird. He warked happily at the sight of her, speeding up his hobble meet her. "I thought you had died…I'm so sorry I left you, I won't ever leave ever again…evereverever!" She chanted as she hugged the bird fiercely. As the large black bird cooed contentedly as Yuffie hugged his neck, Six and the other two chocobos from the airship began coming closer. Six cautiously making his way to Tifa, who welcomed the sight with a delirious smile, and sat beside her.

"That'll fuckin' work. Good job, Yuffs." Cid walked up beside her and ruffled her hair a little.

"It's only one gold though, Cid. That's not enough for all of us to get across." Yuffie said softly, watching the gold bird as it sat, nestling protectively next to Tifa. "Cloud!" Yuffie shouted to the blond, who quickly turned from Vincent to her. "You need to pack up enough supplies to get you to Mideel." Yuffie spoke with an air of authority. Cloud, for his part, eyed Tifa and the golden chocobo. He nodded in agreement and began to through a few things together for their trip. "If you head north from here you should make good time, just follow this current." Just off shore, where the water was deeper, Cloud could make out the ripples of a riptide.

"Thank you, Yuffie. I'll be back soon…with help." Cloud placed a hand on her shoulder and looked down at her the faintest hint of adoration, to which she blushed.

"See you guys soon." She smiled, her face suddenly lighting up like she'd just discovered the greatest new materia ever. Vincent let the smallest of smiles grace his features. "I'm gonna go…" She trailed off, wanting to say more to Cloud and yet wanting to be near Vincent at once. He nodded in understanding and made his way, pack in hand, toward a pale Tifa and Six.

* * *

Reno, Rude, Elena, Tseng, and Rufus stood with Vincent and Barret near a chunk of the Sierra that was acting as a support for Vincent's still weak body. Rufus huffed at his broken PHS and the others were busily chatting either with Vincent or amongst themselves. 

"Choco…Mog?" Yuffie couldn't help but laugh. Rufus smiled politely in return, chuckling a little himself.

"You may thank Reeve for that. You can also tell him just how effective his fluffy idea of a strong summon worked out for us." There was a strong hint of sarcasm there.

"It did save our lives, sir." Elena said quietly behind him, trying not step out of bounds with him.

He seemed to ponder that for a moment. "I suppose you are correct, I still believe Kujata was more efficient than this." He held the orb up for inspection.

"Reeve is a pacifist, Rufus. He believes in fighting with words and intelligence more than brute force." Vincent spoke up from his spot, Tseng nodding in agreement.

"That explains that idiotic robotic cat." Rufus sighed nudging a chunk of metal aside. As it fell Yuffie let out a sad whine.

"Aw, you can't make fun of him when he's broken!" She laughed as she went over and scooped up Cait Sith's battered form. As she lifted him a few sparks shot out from his now exposed wiring.

"Think he heard ya, boss?" Reno half joked. Rufus simply rubbed the bridge of his nose wearily.

"We shall see, wont we Reno." He eyed his team for a moment. The last four remaining Turks, all of them still loyal. He eyed Vincent a bit suspiciously. "Tell me, Valentine, do you enjoy having nothing to do for days on end?" Vincent glanced at him, returning the suspicious stare.

"Not particularly…" he gave a guarded answer.

"Reeve and I could always use someone with your type of experience in our field." Reno nodded in agreement with Rufus. "You've got more skill with a gun than the whole Turk organization together. It wont, however, be as it was under my father. We mostly do recon for Reeve and act as body guards if the need ever arises."

"_Elite _body guards." Elena added with a sexy smirk. "C'mon, Vincent. The old team, the real team…together again." She pleaded with him. Something very uncommon for her.

"Wha'dya say, Vinnie? It is a rare thing to have Mr. Rufus offer you the chance to be one of the A-Team again." Yuffie smiled sweetly down at him.

"I think it'd technically be the 'T-Team', wouldn't it?" Reno grinned at Yuffie.

"Meh, same dif." She turned back to Vincent expectantly.

Vincent watched her for a moment, watching for any sign she'd be unhappy with his decision to work for Reeve and Rufus. She simply offered a radiant smile. "Vincent, if you're worried about what I'd think, don't. I'll follow you to the ends of Gaia and back again. If you want to work for Reeve then I will make sure he's iconic in the rebirth of Wutai. Wont we, dad?" Yuffie turned as Godo made his way over to them. He smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Very well then," Vincent turned to Rufus. "I accept your offer."

"Yes!" Reno shouted in excitement, clapping Rude on the back triumphantly. Rufus rolled his eyes at Reno's childish display. Tseng, in very Tseng fashion, did nothing at all, failing to even acknowledge the exchange. He simply nodded consent to Vincent returning to his post and was done with it. Yuffie'd have to get used to two Vincent's hanging around now.

"Aw, c'mon, you're happy and you know it." Yuffie teased lightly. Tseng lifted an eye brow and the corners of his mouth quirked in a small smile. "Hey, don't get too carried away." Yuffie chuckled good naturedly.

It wasn't until sunset that the first helicopter showed up. It took those that were injured or who couldn't swim back (which was currently just about everyone) by air, returning an hour later to pick the rest up with the aide of a second chopper. By late nightfall they were all safely tucked away at the Mideel Inn, drinking and babbling about the recent battle. Rufus exclaiming he'd never seen such bravery in Tifa before, Reno going on and on about how awe inspiring it was to hear Elena tell Tseng just where he could stick his 'orders' and her blushing and apologizing profusely to the aforementioned man. Tseng remained largely unaffected, as did Vincent. Barret and Cid had somehow conned Cloud, along with Reno and Rude, into a drinking game, which once it was in full swing had Tifa, Yuffie, and Red rolling on the floor, laughing their hearts out.

It must have been one in the morning when Red politely excused himself for sleep, most everyone else following not far behind and leaving Tifa and Yuffie alone to talk. Tifa sat still, kissing Cloud on the cheek as Barret helped him to the stairs, all of them still laughing and singing off key as loud as they could, fellow patrons cheering them on in good spirits as they went. For doing what they did and as often as they had in the past, it was nice to be able to go out and be rowdy immediately after saving the universe again, and not have anyone complain about it.

Yuffie sat still, palming an empty cup in her hand, Tifa sat across from her doing much the same.

"How do you feel?" Tifa asked finally. Yuffie shrugged and scrunched her nose up a little.

"Like I did last year around this time, tired and happy." She smiled back at Tifa. "How're the burns? Do you need me to get anymore of that goop?" Yuffie made an odd face.

"They don't hurt right now; they're ugly as sin though." Tifa grimaced at the swollen pink flesh on her arms and chest. "No bikini's for a while, huh?" Both girls laughed at that. "How do you feel, though. I mean with everything that happened to you in the last couple weeks…are you ok?" Tifa paused and Yuffie could swear she could hear every single buzzer, alarm, and light going off in Tifa's head at once. "And just what the hell is going on with you and Mr. Tall Dark and Vampy?!"

Yuffie nearly fell out of her chair laughing at this before going into all the details of the time before she disappeared in the crater. "And so now...well, we're sort of…you know! I adore him, he's really just '_it_' for me, y'know? That sounds dumb, but whatever that part was that was missing before, he certainly fills that void." Her eyes seemed to stare off into the distance for a moment. "I saw my mother, Tifa. You know, except for the eyes you two look a lot alike." Yuffie beamed at the older woman. "I saw her and Aeris…and even my God. Leviathan. He looks like…like time has never touched him and yet he may have just out run it. I can't explain it, it felt like the whole world didn't exist when he spoke, like nothing mattered but me and him. It was incredible. He spoke and it sounded like a roar and a song, he said 'he didn't need me' and 'the sacrifice has already been paid.' My mother, she died at the hands of Sephiroth for me to live now. Aeris was there…" Yuffie sighed sadly. "Oh! She says we need to get all the weeds out and I told her I would rebuild the church for her." Tifa giggled at Yuffie's excitement and her break neck speed at which she changed emotions.

"Sounds like you were busy." She suddenly grew somber and still. "I was so afraid you had just died. That we would never see you again or hear you laugh, that there would never be another argument over you and Cid's shoes, or-" Tifa hadn't realized she'd started to cry until Yuffie wrapped her arms around her neck, gingerly avoiding any of the still unhealed burns.

"I love you, Tifa. I love you so much." Yuffie whispered brokenly, her own tears threatening to spill over. Both girls pulled apart, grinning to one another.

"I love you too, Yu." She wiped her eyes and mock frowned at the younger girl. "Don't you do that ever again!" Yuffie smiled back at her.

"I promise I will never summon a power so great it might require a soul to use in order to save my friends from certain doom…scouts honor." She held up her hand in a mock salute.

"Yuffie, you were never a boy scout." Tifa grinned.

"You know, Cloud said the same thing once." Yuffie chuckled. "Oh, you know what else?" She rummaged through her bag and produced a beautiful hair comb adorned with three gold rimmed, colorful orchids. "I got it when I beat up a pot a few days ago." She handed it over to Tifa.

"Why were you 'beating up' pots?" Tifa eyed the golden comb with a smile.

"Long story involving me, some bushes, and a frisky chocobo...what'dya think?" Yuffie was about vibrating in her seat with pent up energy.

"I think it is absolutely beautiful, Yuffie." She smiled as she accepted the gift. "I'm so glad you are here." Tifa couldn't help but keep reminding Yuffie of how glad she was to have her there still and that she wasn't dead, or worse, in purgatory awaiting her judgment. She was still needed here; she had quite a bit of unfinished business to attend to before she went and died on everyone. They sat for a little while in a comfortable silence, eventually going on to talk about the weather and how they should get sleep eventually…but neither of them had been tired, seeing as so much excitement had happened in the last few days.

* * *

Yuffie had eventually wandered up to her room after she and Tifa talked. She wasn't at all surprised to see the light on as she approached as she rarely remembered to turn them off as she left. She was surprised to realize someone was inside. 

She turned the key and opened the door. She didn't look up immediately, but she could sense the other person in the room. She shut the door and locked it, taking in the spicy musk that suddenly filled the room. _'Gunpowder…'_ Slowly she turned to face her intruder. Vincent towered above her, his leather outer wear abandoned for something less restrictive. A white sleeveless shirt and black drawstring pants, Yuffie took in the sight of him. His hair was held back by a simple tie and he wore house shoes, one of the few obvious Wutaian things to show in him, aside from his obvious looks. Yuffie couldn't help herself and sobbed weakly before him, he crushed her in a death tight bear hug.

"Gods, Vincent, I thought I'd never see you again!" She sobbed into his arms. He kissed her cheek and down along her neck. She gasped at the contact as she unconsciously tilted her head to one side in order to allow better access.

"I would have come for you, Yuffie." His baritone reverberating off the walls and making her heart skip a beat. He continued to kiss along her neck to her shoulders, whispering her name as he went. She fisted her hands in his shirt, a pleasured sigh escaping her lips.

"Vincent," She breathes out his name. "I need you…now." He pulled back enough to regard her a moment, his crimson eyes filled with passion and desire, something reserved for her and her alone.

"I am yours, Yuffie. Do with me as you please." A slow smile spread across her face as she leaned in for a kiss. She nearly wept at the love she felt for him, the way her heart ached to have him closer to her even though he was standing in front of her.

She gently tugged at the hem of his shirt, slowly working it up and letting her fingers linger over the newly exposed skin. He sucked in a breath, his hands coming to rest at the juncture of her neck and shoulders, toying with her hair. She bent toward him, kissing his well muscled stomach and slowly, working her way back up to his neck. He tore the shirt up over his head and tossed it carelessly behind him.

"You are…beautiful." Yuffie whispered breathlessly. She traced the small scars across his chest and abdomen, he flinched slightly under her touch. "Vince?" She called to him when he seemed to be lost in his own thoughts. He looked down at her, eyes boring into her, and suddenly she was aware of just what it was he was feeling. She met his gaze for a moment, taking in the sight of him. She finally broke the gaze as she lifted her hand to his hair, quickly untying the knot with one hand and releasing his wild black hair. "I love you, Vincent…"

He thought his heart would burst, a feeling of joy that was so foreign to him he almost mistook it for fear. His heart pounded fiercely and suddenly he was dizzy. She kept smiling her temptress's smile and he felt every last once of willpower just up and vanish on him. He leaned into to her, faltering clumsily as he moved in to kiss her. She let a small laugh escape her, which only made him feel more of whatever it was he was already feeling.

"Love…" He whispered against her lips. "You have let me feel what I couldn't on my own for too long." She smiled triumphantly and he crushed his lips to hers, the mood changing to one of passion and need. He easily lifted her small green shirt up over her head, tossing it as haphazardly as he had his shirt moments ago. She went for the draw string only to be distracted by his hands cupping her backside and lifting her off the ground. Instinctively she wrapped her legs around his waist, kicking her shoes off as she did so. She mentally thanked Leviathan once more, kissing Vincent fiercely as she did so. His grip shifted to her thighs, causing her to gasp aloud and break the kiss. He crushed her small frame to his like she was the only thing keeping him tethered to this world, groaning audibly as her bare skin burned into his chest. He turned, pinning her against the wall, his lips hungrily devouring hers. She whispered his name as his hands went for the buttons of her shorts. She let her hands tangle in his mane of ebony black hair, gasping as he bit down on her lower lip. Suddenly he shifted again, landing heavily on the bed with her still pinned beneath him.

She disengaged her legs a moment only to find that he had no intention of just sliding the shorts off. The familiar sound of fabric tearing caused her to moan out his name again as she dug her nails into his back. He kissed and sucked at the flesh of her neck, making her whimper uncontrollably, as his hand made quick work of the last piece of flimsy cloth acting as a barrier between them. She let out a shocked gasp as he suddenly bit her neck, harder than she'd been expecting. It was like a bolt of electricity went through her, causing her desire for him to increase tenfold.

"Pants…now!" Yuffie commanded her voice breathy from lack of oxygen and arousal.

"As you wish." Vincent slowly untied the drawstring as he beside the bed. His eyes held an emotion she hadn't ever seen in anyone before, least of all him. She groaned at his slow pace, propping herself on her elbows to get a better view of him. "Patients princess, you will have what you requested…" His voice was deep growl. She felt her breath hitch, rising quickly to her knees before him.

"Stop." Her voice was soft but demanding as she placed a hand on his, successfully stopping him from lowering the pants. Instead of explaining herself she stood and turned them so he had his back to the bed. She moved painfully slow and Vincent growled out as much to her. "I'm taking my time, who knows when we might have this chance again…" She whispered, alternately kissing down his well muscled abdomen. She reached the pants and untied them letting them fall slowly to the ground, kissing the newly exposed skin as she went. She reached the sign of his arousal and allowed the pants to pool at his feet.

She lifted her gaze to his, his eyes glossed over as he somewhat dazedly stared back at her. She carefully, delicately, took his length into her mouth. He nearly lost it at the contact, groaning loudly as she moved her mouth expertly around him. He would only be able to endure so much of her before it would be over. He had to force his hands to move down and gently coax her back to him. He kissed her, tasting just the barest hints of himself on her lips.

He quickly switched positions to which she let out a startled yelp. His lips left a fiery trail down her slender neck and between her breasts. He carefully took one delicate nub into his mouth, causing her to gasp in pleasure. He nipped and teased more or less according to her whimpering and then moved to do the same to the other. She thought she might burst from sheer pleasure. She hardly noticed when he moved down her firm stomach and down to her burning core. She felt him grasp her hips firmly and glanced down at him. Her breathing faltered at the sight of him between her legs, staring back at her hungrily. Her head flew back and her hands fisted almost violently into the sheets as she felt his tongue graze her nether regions. She moaned uncontrollably, unable to move due to his firm grasp, able only to writhe pitifully beneath his ministrations. He paused for a second, placing delicate kisses along her thighs and then slowly working his way back. He slowly drew his tongue across her wetness, slowly working her into a veritable mass of whimpers and moans.

She cried out, her voice muffled by his human hand, as he suddenly grazed her most sensitive spot. She saw stars, crying out his name as he pushed her over the edge.

He rose up to meet her; she could smell herself on his lips. She kissed him, beyond words at this point, moaning as he nearly crushed their bodies together. He positioned himself above her, his crimson eyes burning with desire for her and only her. She watched him, watched as hundreds of emotions flashed through his eyes as he hovered above her. He leaned in, his forehead resting against hers and his breath ragged.

"Kokoro kara anata o aishite imasu…" He spoke just above a whisper, sending chills down her spine. Her eyes locked onto his, surprised at him using his native tongue and slowly realizing what he just said.

"Vincent, I-"he cut her off with a kiss, burying himself within her. Her voice broke into a moan of pure ecstasy. He kissed her until the need for oxygen became too great; he parted gasping her name as she dug her nails into his shoulder and chest. She panted his name over and over, pressure building from somewhere deep within. He began moving faster, he gently brought her right knee up, hooking it over his shoulder with his metal hand. She gasped at the contact of cool metal and hot skin, nearly losing herself then.

She fisted a hand in his hair and with the other turned his face so she could see his face. They locked eyes and Yuffie could swear she left the planet. Suddenly she felt lighter than air, the only thing she could feel was him, his hands, his lip, just…him. She whispered his name as she found her release, groaning as he thrust harder a moment longer, her name coming out a ragged growl. He lingered above her for a moment, taking in the sight of her. Her entire body was flushed, glowing radiantly. He felt such a longing for her, it wasn't an entirely foreign feeling but it was unusual. He slowly let himself down just to the right of her, pulling her up and onto him with her leg that was still propped on his shoulder. She was breathing hard, trying to catch her breath. She glanced up at him, a slow smile spreading across her face. He carefully tucked a few stray strands of hair out of her face, letting his metal fingers trail down her cheek. He gently cupped her cheek, insistently pulling her in for one last kiss before they both began to give into sleep.

"You are mine, Vincent." She held his metal hand to face, placing feather soft kisses against the palm. "Forever..."

"I believe that is an arrangement I can live with." Vincent replied, chuckling as Yuffie held his hand possessively to her heart. He sighed; pulling her in closer and wrapping a blanket around their still intertwined bodies, nestling her head against his chest and rest his cheek against her.

* * *

They slept through breakfast; they may have even slept through lunch if Cloud hadn't come to wake them. Yuffie giggled at Tifa's insistence to know what could have possibly kept her bottomless pit of a stomach away from a breakfast of champions…namely bagels, boxed cereal and almost cold milk, to which Yuffie made her trademarked _'Gross beyond all things gross'_ disgusted face. Yuffie and Tifa sat together on the helicopter that took them back to Kalm. The pair talked 'girl talk' according to Yuffie. Something she'd never really done before. As they landed Reeve was there at the bar, with Shelke in tow. His face fell when Yuffie presented him Cait's crumpled body. Shera had even flown the 'Tiny Bronco' down to see Cid. 

Cid ran to her, sweeping her off her feet ever so carefully and kissing her senseless. She laughed gleefully, Cid gently ran a hand across her now outstretched abdomen. Everyone gathered around, 'oohing' and 'awing' at her and congratulating her. Yuffie turned to a still semi distressed Reeve as Cid took Shera inside to rest.

"I have to make a new one every year. I think this was my favorite one, so far." He frowned slightly, causing Yuffie to chuckle at the older man.

"It's a Robot, Skippy, don't get your panties in a twist. Besides, he wasn't as responsive as the original. Kinda slow in battle, useless as far as airship repairs go, and a complete bore at small talk," Yuffie took a breath and placed her hands on her hips, shaking her head disdainfully at the little cat. "Seriously, Reeve. You can do better." She patted him on the shoulder.

"Hey! This one can make calls from the bottom of Cosmo Canyon, survive up to fifteen thousand, not hundred, feet below water, and-"He started, Yuffie cut him off.

"What, there's more?" Yuffie laughed in mock surprise.

"He can speak seven languages." Reeve concluded, seemingly quite proud of himself.

"So could Vincent, Tseng, and Rufus, but you don't see them all smashed to smithereens, do you?" She waved her hand around emphatically to the trio behind her.

"Language doesn't make them any better on the battlefield, it's all about calculations and strategies!" He replied indignantly.

"EXACTLY! I'm just saying maybe you should have included a strategy for escaping falling objects in this one." Yuffie thrust a hand in the air out of frustration. Rufus and Cloud exchanged grins, Reno chuckling a little himself.

"What do you mean; he was fifteen percent more agile than the last." Reeve gave the doll a blank stare.

"Reeve, he was hit in the face with an airship." There was a roar of laughter behind her, Reeve was surprisingly the one being laughed at this time.

"Man, you should give it up. Besides, you have Shelke working for you now. Isn't she more efficient than Cait anyway?" Reno threw an arm over a very confused and flustered Reeves shoulder. Tifa made her way into the house with Cloud's help and was nearly knocked to the ground when both Marlene and Denzel came running from inside.

"Mr. Reeve let Denzel eat my candy!" Marlene immediately shouted at Tifa, Reeve turned crimson.

"He did not, it was mine already!" Denzel folded his arms defensively across his chest, eyes boring into little Marlene.

"And Shelke says that staying up late does not interfere with my ability to confabter..confab…do homework!" Marlene finally huffed out in frustration. Shelke eyed the girl suspiciously.

Tifa clucked at the children, patting them on the head sweetly before agreeing to let them both stay up as late as they wanted tonight and eat as much candy as they possibly could. They seemed to find this to be an agreeable proposal and ran off to play.

"I did not say she could stay up all night…" Shelke whispered slightly defensively. Tifa shrugged and smiled back at her.

"She is the queen of 'getting things my way'." Tifa waved to both children as they rounded a corner, heading for a park nearby. "Let's have a big dinner tonight." Tifa was greeted by a chorus of cheers and 'good idea's.

Tifa's, with the help of Elena and Yuffie, set to work getting a menu put together and taking an inventory of the bar. She'd have to go do a huge shopping run, but that's what lists and men were for. There was little protest from Cloud, who somehow managed to get Cid, Barret and Reno to help out. Vincent set out with Reeve to take care of what few things he had to in order to be reinstated to the Turks.

"Okay, we'll be eating by seven, that gives you all six hours to do whatever you have to. Be back here at seven and not a second later." Tifa made one last announcement as Cloud carted in groceries. There were nods and voiced agreements as everyone set out to their respective homes.

'_It's so nice to finally have them home again…'_ Tifa smiled to herself as she set about the task or preparing dinner.

_A/N: I believe that is my longest and possibly most random chapter yet. I think if I tweaked it a bit it could be its own one shot. Anyways, I think I might do one last one like this…or I'll leave it alone. I'm not sure yet. My muse is rather temperamental…So, read/review let me know what y'all think :) -Ave_

_I love you very much I found a really neat site for translating stuff. And sorry, my computer likes to make up its own rules about grammar and enforce them without my knowledge...so please excuse my crummy spell/grammar check. _


	20. Koishii

_Possibly the last chapter of this mini-monstrosity. Thank you all for sticking by this story, I couldn't have done it without you :) As usual, don't own 'em…want to, but not gonna happen. And I stole a line from another story…sorry. I'm going to warn you now, it's long.  
_

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The air was cool against Yuffie's skin; she'd just finished her morning training ritual and was now meditating in the main palace garden, in the very spot Sephiroth had. After everything that had conspired in the last eighteen months she had decided to hone her skills. She'd become faster, her strike had become more accurate than ever before. Yuffie had essentially graduated to a true ninja, following closely in her mothers steps. Godo had stepped down six months back, leaving Yuffie the new ruler of Wutai. Much of the Wutaian traditions had been overlooked in light of recent events. Yuffie was not only the youngest Empress Wutai had ever had, she was also the first unmarried and female ruler of Wutai. Godo had stepped down in order to get the rest he needed and recover from whatever illness it was that was slowly eating away at the former Emperor of Wutai.

'_You are my daughter and my world. I know it is tradition but this is a time for change, a new Empress, and a new regime. I can see now, after all you've gone through for your country, your family, and your friends, that you know exactly what makes a leader great. You, Yuffie Kisaragi, are the light of Wutai and Leviathan help anyone or anything that attempts to dim that light.' He turned to the people gathered before the palace. 'I give you Yuffie Kisaragi, Empress of Wutai!' The crowd cheered and music filled the air. Yuffie felt tears streaking down her cheeks and for once she wasn't ashamed. In all her travels and all her adventures she'd finally grown into the woman her parents had always known she would be._

Godo had announced the day Yuffie was to be given the title of _'Empress of Wutai'_ that she would not be married to any of her prearranged suitors. For not the first time in her life, Yuffie was glad Godo was her father. He had shown her then that he had faith in her and cared about those that she held dear to her heart, and when he made his statement Yuffie nearly burst into tears. She hugged the closest person to her, which at the time just happened to be Nanaki, everyone else having been busy rebuilding in the wake of the 'Ark' left him as the only member of AVALANCH to see the whole event.

She smiled at the memory, it wasn't the proper ceremony but it was more out of necessity than anything else. The people needed something to boost moral. The real coronation was in a month's time, she wasn't exactly excited about it though, she'd have to wear a heavy dress, be made up like a clown…in her opinion anyway. It would be a beautiful ceremony though, and she wouldn't take that away from her father.

Again her thoughts were moving onto other things...like construction. The Pagoda had come a long way, as had the palace itself. Most of the damage had been repaired and it was now livable again. The garden had actually sustained the least amount of damage; it was covered in splintered wood from the upper most level. Much to Yuffie's delight none of the plants had been harmed beyond salvation. A little grooming and watering and they were as good as new. Most of the town residents had taken shelter in the caves near the shores of Da Chao. If Avalanche had stayed, that very well could have become their tomb. The village itself was nearly wiped out, however the villagers were resilient and with the help of Rufus, Avalanche, and the new WRO urban development team, most of the villagers now had new houses in various stages of development. The reconstruction was far from over, but the progress they made gave her tremendous hope for the future of her country. And, as promised, Reeve was the head of the whole project. She smiled to herself, thanks to him everything had been running smoothly and ahead of schedule.

It had been the longest eighteen months of Yuffie's life. Who knew being an Empress could be so difficult? All her father ever seemed to do was listen to boring meetings and sign important looking documents. Apparently there was more to ruling a country than sleeping and being literate. She hadn't spoken much Wutaian either until now; it seemed that now that she was to truly be empress not a single person in the known universe could speak anything but. She took a deep breath, pushing her thoughts away once more in favor of brighter things, like the distant, steady beat of helicopter blades against thin air. Her ears perked up as she lifted one shapely eyebrow in thought. The sound, however, seemed as though it was heading away and not toward her, she sighed inwardly.

"Getting a little ahead of myself, two weeks Yuffie, you just have to make it two more weeks…" Yuffie mumbled to no one in particular, berating herself for the momentary lapse. "Helicopters come and go all day…" she trailed off, focusing her thoughts on the village and all the work that still had to be done.

She smiled, for what had to be the umpteenth time that day, as she sipped her green tea and brushing a few sakura petals from the tray. Her hair had been pulled back in a messy bun, and she took a moment to collect herself. She felt as though she'd aged more in the last eighteen months than she had in her nearly four years with Avalanche and the WRO. She was almost twenty one now and a newly appointed leader. For her, life had finally come full circle. There were actually very few things she'd managed to miss out on, but she figured she had plenty of time to catch up now.

She stood, preparing to head into the palace. Her progress was halted as the scent of gunpowder and something she could only define as masculine caught her completely off guard. Her heart skipped a beat as she stood for a moment, closing her eyes.

"You are early." She remained facing forward, feeling her body come alive as he stood closer to her. A warm hand trailed up the side of her arm, resting at her shoulder, tracing circles against the soft skin.

"I could leave, if you'd prefer it." His deep voice sent chills rippling through her. She hadn't realized until exactly that moment just how much she'd missed him.

"Hm…I suppose you could. I haven't yet finished my meditation." She leaned back against him, only mildly surprised he was not wearing the leather outfit. It felt much softer, and she could actually feel the muscles of his torso flexing as she let more of her weight lean on him. The golden claw encircled her and she let out a small sigh, still not looking up to meet the crimson orbs staring back at her in amusement. She hadn't seen him in quite a while. The last time he'd been here had been with Reeve, Reno, and Rude and they all had work to attend to, which left very little time for them to even speak to one another. By work she meant they had to go around the edges of the city and kill off any monsters brazen enough to come too close.

"Then I'll be going." He whispered against her ear, nearly causing her knees to give out, disengaging his arms from her as he started turning to walk away. Before he could she spun around.

"Vincent, I wou-"Her voice died instantly as she turned to face him completely. He wore an elegant black suit and black shoes to match. His hair was pulled back and resembled the way Tseng wore his; he was also sporting dark sunglasses, which made her giggle lightly to herself. He had a much smaller weapon she was sure he wasn't used to carrying, still a larger gun than any other man would choose to use. Everything about him seemed more at peace and alive, he even looked happy to her. She could see it in his eyes, though he'd lost immortality, he'd gained his humanity and with that, absolution of his sins. "Your hair…the suit, you look…Oh my God, you look incredible." She said excitedly, eyes roaming over the 'new him' in what he could only assume was approval.

"I'm glad you approve." He stated with a slight quirk of his lips.

"Approve? Hell, I'd tear your clothes off right here and now if it weren't for the fact that practically everyone and their aunt can see us." Yuffie gave the palace a comically suspicious glare. Vincent chuckled at the ninja's antics. Yuffie's eyes shot back to him, holding his stare for a moment as something unspoken, but not unpleasant, passed between them. "How long has it been?"

"Nine months, two weeks, five days, and twenty two hours." Vincent spoke softly, offering a small smile.

"You counted down to the hour?" She smiled brightly back at him, taking a step closer to him.

"It has been too long…I was simply looking for a way to pass the time." He shook his head, a small smile staying at the corners of his mouth.

"I counted, too." She admitted sheepishly. Her smile began to fade to something else, something the gunman hadn't seen in almost a year and it made his heart dance. He bent slowly, cupping her cheek with his human hand, his golden claw guiding her by the waist closer to him. She whispered his name as his lips came crashing down on hers. Her hands shot up to his hair, her slender fingers winding through his thick, black locks, easily wrapping around the back of his neck. She sighed against him as he broke the kiss and held her firmly. He kissed the top of her head before resting his cheek against her hair.

"Tadaima." Vincent whispered in their native tongue, she tightened her grip in response. They stood a little while, neither one speaking, simply enjoying the mere presence of one another.

Today, he felt different, he felt better than he had in the last sixty some odd years of his life, of those only the last five had held any real meaning. It was during all that time that he made the first real friends he'd ever allowed himself to have, fallen in love with something tangible and wonderful, he had even earned his mortality back and he would age once again. That thought surprised him most, he'd age with her. They could be as the others were, and more than that, he could truly _be_ with Yuffie…a lifetime with her instead of an eternity of solitude.

Now he worked for the very company that had sent him to his first death, the company that now offered him a way to rebuild his second life. He shook his head slightly, pulling back from Yuffie who cast a questioning glance up at him.

"Gil for your thoughts?" She cocked her head to one side, watching him carefully. When he simply shook his head, smiling yet again in response, she turned to pour a second cup of green tea. Vincent watched her kneel down carefully, pour the steaming green liquid into one very ornate cup, and rise with practiced grace he hadn't seemed to take notice of before. "What? Never seen a woman pour tea?" She gave him an amused grin.

"Weren't you the one who said you would never follow those subservient Wutaian traditions?" He lifted one eyebrow at her in question.

"It's just tea, _Vinny_. Don't get your cape in a wad, besides, all I meant was I wouldn't be some stupid cow spending the rest of her life on her knees worshipping and bowing to every whim of her husband…there is a very big difference between servitude and honor." She sipped her tea; eyes shinning with some unnamable emotion. As Vincent seemed to ponder this, he looked up, offered a small nod and took a drink of his own tea. "Although for you, I might change my mind…" she whispered just loud enough for him to hear, turning away and taking a seat on the mat she'd been doing her meditating on before he could completely register what she'd meant. She watched him over her shoulder with wonder, his eyes stared somewhere beyond her, or threw her. It was the slowly building light in his eyes, the smile that danced across his lips, and the way he knelt before her, and taking her chin in one hand, delicately kissed her lips. Her breath stopped altogether as her heart pounded in her chest.

"Only you…" His voice was soft and filled with an emotion she'd never heard in him. "I absolutely _loathe_ that name…" He grinned, beamed even, down at her, crimson eyes shinning with true happiness.

"I know, but I love it and you love me so you put up with it. Plus, I think deep down, you actually _love_ that you have your very own 'nickname'." He tested out a real laugh, enjoying the smile he received in return, as he took a seat beside her, her small, slender fingers intertwined with his golden, metal ones. Despite not having nerves to relay the sensation of her hand in his, he felt a sort of warmth build within him. Something about knowing she accepted him, monstrous or not, put him at ease.

They spent a good deal of time in silence, simply getting reacquainted with one another's presence. Shelke stood beside Cait Sith and had watched their little interaction with much curiosity. She decided, once they'd stopped talking and had resigned themselves to silently drink tea, that she'd go back and find the others. The pair seemed content as they watched the village below busy itself with the reconstruction of its homes and crops. A small street faire had begun to set up, how crops had survived the burning of the village was beyond her very intuitive mind, but a fair amount had. Shelke turned as a door behind her closed, Tifa Lockheart, was heading her way. She couldn't help herself and smiled at her, and even more surprising were the next few words she said to the brunette.

"They look nice together." Shelke clapped her hands over her mouth in shock. Tifa smiled, laughing lightly at the young girl.

"That they do." Tifa agreed, placing her hands on the young girls' shoulders. "Any sign of anyone else?" She turned down to the robotic cat. It shook its head, shrugged its shoulders and proceeded to walk out to the garden toward Yuffie and Vincent.

"Hello, Cait. How can I help you?" Yuffie hadn't bothered to turn and face the cat. Vincent arched an eyebrow at her, silently in awe of her ability to know exactly who it was behind them without looking, she hadn't even opened her eyes.

"They've arrived, Lady Kisaragi. Miss Tifa Lockheart and Miss Shelke are waiting for you in the palace." The robotic voice spoke pleasantly, not at all the annoying accented voice of all the previous models.

"I thought you hated Reeve's Cait Sith's?" Vincent seemed amused.

"Reeve made it for me and I didn't have the heart to say no. Plus he let me design a little of it." She still hadn't opened her eyes.

"Like the voice?" Vincent sat back on his elbows, sipping more tea.

"Gods! That was the _very_ first thing to go. Could you have put up with that annoying twangy voice for the next…however long I let it live?" She paused for a drink of her own tea. "He sounds much better now. It's a little of Denzel, a little of Nanaki. I worked hard making it, I'm really quite proud." She smiled, glancing back at the cat. "Thank you Cait, contact Cid Highwind on the 'Shera' and make sure he still knows where Wutai is, and if he does give him those landing coordinates I gave you earlier."

"Of course, Miss Yuffie." The cat then pranced off to get Shelke and do as Yuffie had instructed.

"Leave Shelke alone, she isn't here to do your work for you!" She shouted after the cat, to which a very unhappy whine, which sounded remarkably like Denzel himself, was heard in response. Vincent chuckled as she walked ahead of him. "You do that a lot now." She stated, not turning back to see if he was listening.

"What is that?" He sat his empty cup beside hers on the tray beside the mat.

"Laugh, smile, be generally happy. I've only spent the last hour or so with you and you have done all that, and then some, more in that time than in all the rest of the time I've been with you."

"That, Lady Kisaragi, is entirely your doing." He said with an air of authority. "You and the other members of AVALANCH." She smiled at his answer and continued toward the palace, her hips swaying gently as she moved, he found himself fixated on the hem of her shorts, the same shorts that had caused him so much distress from very early on.

"Eyes on the prize, huh Vince?" Yuffie laughed at his briefly flustered appearance. She stopped, turning to him and wrapped both arms around his neck again. "I've missed you…" She kissed him lightly on the cheek. The moment was over as quickly as it had started, however, and left him momentarily stunned.

She practically bounced into the palace and right into Tifa's arms. She turned and gave the younger woman beside her an equally enthusiastic hug, which was returned in about the same manner. "I'm so glad everyone's getting together!" Yuffie nearly squealed at the fighter. Shelke, very uncharacteristically, giggled and successfully surprised Tifa.

"Sorry, Miss Lockheart." Shelke stared at the older woman, obviously equally shocked. Tifa grinned broadly and threw an arm around the smaller girl.

"This is going to be a wonderful trip." Tifa stared thoughtfully at Vincent a moment. "The darkness is finally gone." Tifa smiled wistfully out the window. "Think we'll get bored?"

"How do you mean?" Vincent joined the conversation, standing beside Yuffie.

"Well, we won't be stopping an evil corporation, or meteor. Jenova is officially not a threat anymore, the construction on the Church is set to start in six months, Sephiroth has been quite literally frozen in time, and…well there just isn't anything left to do." She thought for a moment. "Guess we could try and solve the 'World Peace' problem."

"Wutai is the only warring nation left and we aren't going to pick a fight with anyone…well, if there was anyone left to fight with, that is." Yuffie shrugged.

"Well, guess we have no excuse not to make lots of trips to the Golden Saucer. Oh, before I forget, Cloud's down there somewhere with Reno, Rude, Lord Godo, and Elena. I guess he's going to stay here for a while and help with the construction and as many of the deliveries going in or out as he can." Tifa watched for any sign of the blond down below.

"Wow, that's terrific. That'll really help our mailers; we lost quite a few of our golden chocobos." Yuffie sighed, stretching her arms over her head. "Speaking of all things Golden, where are Barret and the kids? Gods, I can't _wait_ to see Denzel and Marlene!" Yuffie jumped up and down excitedly. Tifa sighed and mumbled something about her not changing, smiling down at the excitable ninja. Shelke studied Yuffie's actions for a moment, smiling to herself.

"It will be nice to see the children again." Shelke said softly. "I enjoyed spending time with them." Yuffie laughed, grabbing Shelke by the arm.

"It really is nice to have you and Reeve back." Yuffie giggled, hugging Shelke again. "Kids, where be they?!" She demanded when Tifa didn't respond.

"They're on their way; they caught a ride with Cid and Shera…on the 'Shera'." Tifa shook her head smiling. "They're bringing little Corbyn. He's such a cutie, you'll absolutely love him." Tifa took Yuffie by the arm, heading out of the palace and to the path leading down to town. Vincent, Shelke and Cait Sith following behind.

"How have you been, Mr. Valentine?" Shelke queried, eyes staring intently at the two women before her.

"I have been well, Shelke, and you?" He tucked both hands into his pockets, taking a more relaxed posture as he kept at a leisurely pace behind Tifa and Yuffie, who were deeply involved in a conversation about babies and how cute they may or may not be.

"My current situation with Mr. Reeve Tuesti is acceptable. I am…" Shelke made a waving motion with her hands, floundering for the right words. "Happy…" She turned, a befuddled look gracing her features. Vincent chuckled at her expression.

"Yes, Shelke, I believe you are." He turned back to watching Yuffie and Tifa.

The rest of the walk was quiet, save for Yuffie and Tifa occasionally popping off with a comment on something that had happened during the last year or so that the other may not have known. While Yuffie had received numerous photos of Corbyn Highwind, sent hundreds of gil worth of clothing, toys, and anything else a baby may need to them, had written letters to both Marlene and Denzel regularly, as well as Tifa, Cloud, Barret, and even a few to him, everyone had been relatively wrapped up in either rebuilding Wutai or their own lives and as a result Yuffie felt like she'd missed out on the last year with her friends. She'd been able to see Vincent at least before he had his latest mission, which took him back to Kalm and away from her for nine months. She didn't need to ask him to know that he'd felt the loss as much as she had, though he still rarely showed an overt amount of emotion, he did show more than he had in years passed.

"Lady Kisaragi," Cait stopped suddenly, his voice going to static suddenly. Yuffie turned to the robot, waiting for him to finish.

"Hey brat, we've landed near town! Couldn't get th' 'Shera' where you wanted her so head to the coast near town." There was a crackle and laughter along with 'Hi, Yuffie!' could be heard in the background.

"Hey old man, we're on our way down so just hold on will ya!?" Yuffie laughed back at Cid.

"Who you callin' old?! Just hurry the hel-ouch! Heck, sorry! Hurry the heck up!" Cid grumbled something as Shera's voice came through, obviously chastising Cid for his use of foul language in the presence of a baby and children. Without another word, Yuffie turned and ran the rest of the way down the path, the others hot on her heels.

The sight that greeted her made her squeal like a school girl at a concert. There sat the 'Shera', anchored off shore. She was big and beautiful. There was the same painting from the 'Highwind' on the side, which made Yuffie laugh. It was at least twice the size of the other two. Two upper decks and two engines that she could see, it was a brilliant silver and dark green trim with what looked like Wutaian bamboo as flooring and paneling. Come to think of it, someone had been buying up quite a bit and as such had aided greatly in funding the rebuilding of the city.

"So, whad'ya think?" Cid gnawed on a toothpick, beaming at his new airship. "It's a damn beauty! Took me most of a year t'git th'parts fer it, but the buildin' part wasn't too tough. She got a full sized galley, a special room fer everyone. Extra's if we find ourselves needin' to transport others and a little play room with toys and the like fer th'kids, which was Shera's idea. The birds are now kept in a hold…Well, just get up there and look fer yer self." Cid threw an arm around Yuffie's shoulder. "Oh! Y'know what the best part is?" He was grinning like a Cheshire cat back at her.

"There's more?! Good grief, Cid, you've really outdone yourself this time." Yuffie clasped her hands together excitedly.

"Yer not gonna get sick, she's built like a tank but you wont feel it when she flies. I did it fer my boots." Cid winked at Yuffie, which earned him a playful punch in the arm. "Wanna go fer a ride?" Yuffie nodded her head vigorously, giggling excitedly.

"Yes, Captain Highwind, I would love to go for a ride." She turned to find Vincent. He was standing not far off, staring ahead at the airship as he listened to something Nanaki was saying. He was going on and on about the construction of the massive airship, all the moving parts this one had and how hard it had been to put the two engines together in Cosmo Canyon. Shera stood on the other side of him, showing off little Corbyn. Vincent must have felt her staring; he looked up from the baby and smiled at her. A tiny hand shot out and grabbed for the golden claw. Yuffie felt her heart flutter as she smiled back. Shera was laughing at the boy as he struggled vainly against her, reaching with all his might for a very startled Vincent. He smiled shyly, slowly letting the boy grab a hold of his metal hand. Yuffie turned to Cid, who was grinning like a loon at her. "Shut up and get this bird ready to fly." She socked him again, jumping away and squealing playfully as he took off after her.

"Brat! I'll get you back, you hear?! Trouble is, you won't know when or where…" Cid growled out, a comically evil glare set on his face.

"I'm a ninja, old man, you can't surprise me." She gave a haughty little snort to accentuate her statement. She was beyond surprised, however, when cold water was suddenly poured over her head and Barret, along with his two little partners in crime, could be heard booming with laughter behind her. "I stand soaked and corrected." Yuffie held up her hand, pointing up at Denzel and Marlene laughing above her in Barret's arms. Cid laughed at her, taking a towel Barret couldn't toss without dropping Marlene, and wrapped it around the ninja.

--------------------

Preparations made and with everyone packed they headed off toward the Golden Saucer. The Sherra docked and everyone made a mad dash for the entrance, Yuffie of course leading the pack with Vincent, Shelke and Nanaki brining up the rear.

Upon arriving they decided to go take in the sights and new additions, including a new Chocobo race track, which had most of the guys heading off in that direction, Marlene and Denzel bee lined it for the arcade. Elena, Tifa, and Shera went to go see what shows would be playing later, leaving Vincent, Shelke, Nanaki, and Yuffie to figure out what they would do. Nanaki suggested the 'Astro Lounge', one of the new additions.

"What's the 'Astro Lounge'?" Yuffie read through the map, trying to narrow down what she'd like to do.

"It is a place to stargaze." Nanaki replied quietly. "Perhaps you would rather do something more exciting." He smiled knowingly at her.

"I would like to accompany you, Nanaki." Shelke spoke with a hint of hesitation.

"Excellent idea, Miss Shelke, let us be off then." With that the fire cat and robot girl were off, leaving Vincent and Yuffie to decide what they would be doing.

"How about the…arena?" Yuffie suggested with a sigh of defeat. "I can't possibly make a decision; there are too many places I want to go." Vincent smiled and nodded.

"I have a better idea." Vincent gingerly took Yuffie's hand, heading off in the direction Tifa and the others had gone. They went past the auditorium and viewing screens and up the stairs to the roof. It was dusk and she could make out a few stars here and there. It was a full harvest moon as well, which made her smile a little as she stood marveling at the orange glow it gave off. She turned to Vincent to ask him what they were doing up on the roof. He caught her mid turn, stopping her movement. "I love you, Yuffie Kisaragi." Yuffie's breath caught in her throat, even though she'd heard him say it once before, it still shocked her that he had come to feel so strongly for her. "I am yours, and yet I have no idea how this happened." She turned in his arms to look up at him. "I cannot imagine what my life would be like without you."

"Boring, empty…you'd be in that musky old mansion, rotting away." She grinned up at him. He kissed her forehead in an almost impulsive manner.

**"**Taizai." Vincent's voice rumbled like rolling thunder, Yuffie felt a tingle work itself down her spine. "Taizai…watashi no chikaku, eikyuu ni." She sucked in a breath. "Watashi ha kodoku ni tsukare te iru." He finally looked down at her. She trembled against him and for a moment he thought she might actually run from him.

"You…but you don't…I thought-"He kissed her, successfully silencing her. "Watashi ishi, eie**n** ni." He smiled, albeit a sad smile, and kissed her again.

"If only." He said at last. "I cannot bear the thought of you being given to another."

"You forget much of our customs…and our rules." Yuffie paled slightly at the thought. "Assuming I would even be able to find a suitor now, I would be branded a…uh, well a whore. I'd be labeled for all to see and I would lose much of my stature as Empress." Vincent's eyes went wide; he had forgotten that she was to be 'pure' on her wedding night. In his own defense he'd been with the Turks too long, purity was in the eye of the beholder.

"Oh, what have I done to you…"His head dropped, his forehead pressed against hers.

"Nothing!" She laughed, which ended in a squeak when he tightened his embrace. "Gah, Yuffie can't breathe, Vinnie." He tightened his grip in response. "Loosen up that grip, Hercules." She wriggled for all she was worth, hardly able to budge him.

"Nothing? Nothing?! I've-"His voice rose in anger and frustration

"Ok, first of all-Don't yell, that's mean. Second, tradition be damned…or so my father has said. I am Empress now, Vincent. I am free to make my own decisions about what to do with my love life and who I choose to spend my forever with. If that just so happens to mean you, then it _will_ be you." She huffed out of breath. Vincent didn't respond at first, he simply stood and stared at her. Her hair, which had been pulled back earlier, now fell around her shoulders. It was as straight as Tifa's hair and black like the sky at midnight. Her eyes were illuminated by moonlight and whatever other worldly force had been dwelling within her during their mission against 'Ark'. She wasn't wearing the shorts anymore; she had gone for a completely different look. She now wore a beautiful white dress that ended at her knees. The dress itself was simple; it was made of some sort of cotton, thin straps at the shoulder and it fluttered around her freely. She had a pair of simple white sandals on, which were lying, forgotten, by his jacket at the opening they'd emerged from. A thought came to Vincent and Yuffie could practically hear the wheels in his head turning. He let body go but kept a firm hold on her hand, turning with his still inhuman speed they were off and down the stairs before she could say 'Leviathan!' They ran past A surprised Tifa, Elena, and Shera. The three women followed, more out of curiosity, and found Vincent and a slightly confused and giggly Yuffie standing with the rest of the crew, save for Marlene and Denzel.

"What the hell's wrong with the Vamp?" Cid questioned, nearly dodging a slap from Shera.

"Dunno, but I have some damn Chocobos' to bet on. What's the problem Vince, Yuffie steal somethin' from ya?" Yuffie held back the urge to stick her tounge out at Barret.

Vincent didn't respond to either Cid or Barret, instead he turned to Yuffie. "Forever is a very long time." He said softly, thus quieting the rest of the group. Everyone unconsciously leaned closer to the pair, as if they were going to miss whatever Yuffie said next.

"Forever with you isn't so bad." Yuffie beamed at him. The group took a collective breath, anxiously waiting for them to clarify what had happened.

"Is that, like, 'Vincent' talk for what I think it is?" Tifa blurted out. Vincent turned and nodded, a small smile dancing at the corners of his mouth.

Yuffie threw her arms around his neck and firmly planted her lips on his. Cloud grabbed Tifa by the waist and spun her around in the air, cheering Vincent and Yuffie on. Barret laughed and patted Vincent on the back, congratulating him. Cid kissed Shera and Corbyn both, smiling down at the not so little boy in Shera's arms.

"You see that, son? Your aunty Yuffie kissed a vampire." Cid teased, letting Corbyn grab a hold of his finger. Yuffie kissed Cid squarely on the cheek, making a loud smacking sound when she did. She turned her silver gaze the boy and smiled.

"Your dad is a grouchy old man," She turned and smiled at the pilot. "But I wouldn't have him any other way." There would be a massive celebration that night, in honor of Vincent and Yuffie. Tifa managed to tug Yuffie away from Vincent for just long enough to suggest they go by something nice to wear first, and to let the guys do their guy thing with Vincent.

"I think Cloud would really like to do something with just the guys, this is big for him. He's been waiting for this moment for, like, five years." Tifa grinned.

"Vincent didn't even like me then, though!" Yuffie exclaimed, bubbling over with all sorts of excitement.

"Oh, yes he did. Maybe not at this level, but he certainly did care about you. You know Cloud didn't purposefully send you on all those missions with Vincent and Nanaki on purpose, right? They both requested to be grouped with you if ever we needed to split up." Yuffie stared at Tifa, a little disbelieving smile playing across her features. With that Tifa headed to the first boutique, leaving Yuffie to briefly ponder what she'd said before jogging after her.

_**A/N: **__Ok, this one is really long and I lied, it isn't the last chapter…I don't think.__I think I'll write out the ceremony as the next chapter. It will be significantly shorter at least :grins: And all that Japanese in there I got off a pair of translator sites so it may not be exactly right._

_Taizai:Stay_

_watashi no chikaku, eikyuu ni: basically, near me forever_._ At least that's what I was going for._

_Watashi ha kodoku ni tsukare te iru: I am tired of this loneliness…like I said, they are maybe not perfect…but also do not speak Japanese, so I tried._

_Watashi ishi, eie_**_n_**_ ni: I will, eternally…sort of. Japanese grammar is tough._

_R&R Please ;) Sorry it was sooooo long!_


	21. An end to all things

_**More than This has an ending after all…**_

_**xXx**_

Yuffie had never felt so…at peace. She sat on the window ledge of the suite she and the other women were sharing. She wore a simple white night gown, her hair dancing around her shoulders freely. It was as if everything had actually come full circle, there was also the unstoppable love she felt for a certain dark and mysterious gunman. She'd never felt, or even really allowed herself the opportunity to at least acknowledge the existence of those feelings she had for him. It was terrifying and yet liberating all at once.

She shifted, watching the stars above with a small smile, wishing Vincent were there to see it with her. It seemed silly, she'd gone on all this time without ever knowing they felt this way and now, _now _it was somehow difficult to be apart. She watched the shadows play below and all around her in the changing moonlight with mild interest.

"Don't you ever sleep?" She asked in a husky whisper, the shadows moving again, coming nearer to her as they did.

"Not lately, no." His deep voice was like a breath of fresh air, a jolt that she felt all the way to her toes. "What of you? You're still sitting here, counting the stars." His voice held the deep vibration, a lure the was now tempting her out onto the roof tops of the Golden Saucer.

"The stars need counting, how else will we know when there are new ones?" She smiled to herself now as the shadow again moved closer. "I used to ask my mother that, 'why count the stars?' she'd always tell me it was so she would know how many there were…just in case one went missing. Kinda silly I guess…" she hung her head slightly. She felt herself melt as a gentle single metal digit caught her chin and gently urged her to look up.

"It was for hope, count the stars to give you hope for tomorrow…" Vincent's red eyes burned deep into her silver orbs. Yuffie felt her body melt into his hand. He leaned in, brushing his lips against hers as if he were testing to see if she'd actually kiss him. Yuffie caught his lower lip between her teeth, nipping at it before capturing him in a deep kiss.

He caught her by the elbows, gently guiding her out onto the roof, out of her room. Yuffie could swear they were floating out there, her heart pounded away in her chest and she felt that deep burning, overwhelming desire building in the pit of her stomach. The warm wind kissed her skin, he held her gently to his chest, resting his cheek against the top of her head.

"I love you…" She whispered, caught in the moment.

"I don't know why." He replied, tightening his grip a little more.

"Because I can, Vincent, who else would you say is even worthy of one iota of the anything I feel for you?" He stared blankly at her for a moment, unable to answer. "You can't answer because you know there really isn't anyone out there who would be a better _man_ than you." She kissed him again, her small fingers making quick work of his cloak and leather buckles of his shirt.

"…Yuffie," she stopped him with another soul searing kiss, her hands roaming the planes of his muscled chest and abdomen.

"I'll only ask one thing of you, just one…" She pulled back, her silver eyes aglow in the moonlight. He leaned in, in an attempt to recapture her soft lips. She easily dodged his attempts.

"And what would that be, Mrs. Valentine?" Yuffie felt her body shudder to the core at that, _'Mrs. Yuffie Valentine'_ he was hers and she was equally his.

"Make love to me…" He finally caught those sly lips of hers, taking the breath from her and leaving her nearly begging for more.

"Have I ever denied you anything that you have wanted?" He whispered against her ear, grinning at the tremble it sent through her.

"I don't believe you have…"She turned then to face him.

"I don't believe now is going to be any different than any time previous you've made that request." Vincent's claw slid up the side of her thigh until it reached her hip, he smirked at the thin straps of her underwear, straps so thin they'd probably break with nothing more than a sideways glance. One talon was all it took and he felt the fabric slide away.

Yuffie gasped in delight, he never was one to keep her wanting much of anything, even the ceremony five years ago today had been more for her than him.

He knew she'd wanted to have every Wutaian princess's dream wedding so he'd gone along with all the planning only to have her whisk him away in the dead of night and elope on the cliffs of Da Chao with her father and their friends as the only spectators.

'_I don't need the whole of Wutai to watch me go through those silly traditions to know that I love you, that I will always love and honor you…I only ever needed _you_ to know that. The ceremony tomorrow means so much to them, but to me this is the only part that matters…' She held his hand in hers and he could feel the cold metal of the ring he'd give her during the ceremony resting between their palms. She rushed into his arms and held him as though he might blow away in just the right wind. _

'_You don't know how much, how deeply it fills me to hear you say that…' His voice was unusually deep, resonating in a certain perfect harmony with her very essence. 'I am honored that you…' He struggled, for the first time in all the years they had known him; everyone took a collective breath as he fumbled for words. Yuffie, however, smiled brightly up at him knowing exactly what he was trying to tell her. His eyes met her and he spoke in a way not even Cloud had ever been privy to. 'I love you more than I even know how to express, I want to give you all that I am…and when you've had all that, I hope I have more to offer. You are my heart and my salvation, Yuffie Kisaragi. I am honored to be your husband.' Tears poured freely down her cheeks. He smiled at her, warmly and compassionately. With his gloved hand he gently brushed away the tears as he cupped her cheek and leaned into kiss her. 'I will always love you…' He kissed her again, kissing her forehead and whispering against her hair, 'Yuffie Valentine.'_

Had she known then what she did now about the man she never would have let him get away with running off from the group. She would have eagerly followed him to the ends of Gaia and fought by his side against all the demons of his past, and future. She was devoted to him like nothing else in the entire world. Not even materia could distract her when he was near her. _He_ was the key to the restoration of Wutai, as it turned out. His love for her brought about great and wonderful changes in Wutai, the old order was returned, the old traditions were quickly reinstated and the whole of Wutai was returned to its former glory in just under four years. The most blissful four years Godo had ever experienced since his marriage to her mother and her consequent birth.

A nip against the smooth skin of her neck brought her back to the present. Her husband…_husband_…the word felt strange to her. She had married the one unattainable man in the whole of Gaia. She had tamed the untamable.

"We'll see about that…" Vincent chuckled darkly at her as her eyes went wide as she realized she'd once again said what she was thinking aloud. With a growl and a nip against her neck, Yuffie felt her body be lifted and held roughly against something possibly made of stone. The cool stone was welcoming against her burning skin. She gasped aloud as Vincent nearly ripped the slip of a night gown off her body. Immediately he set to work kissing and nipping his way down to her breasts, nipping gently and kissing lightly at the exposed flesh, relishing in her every gasp and moan as he went. His tongue trailed around one hardened nub causing her to moan his name in such a way as to drive him wild. He repeated the act, earning his name another breathless moan and a gasp or two as his free hand moved up to the other side. She dug her nails into his shoulders as he toyed with her. "Tell me what you want me to do…" he commanded, his mouth hot against the skin just above her pounding heart. She whimpered as his teeth grazed none too gently across one pert nub. He felt her breath hitch again as he repeated the action yet again.

"Hn…now you're going to try and prove you have some dominance over me?" Yuffie sighed breathlessly as his metal claw leaped to her hair, tugging back roughly enough to drag a ragged moan from her unexpecting lips. He crushed her lips to his in a soul ravaging kiss, grinding his hips into her, gasping and groaning as her little hands came down quickly, making short work of the last buckles keeping her from what it was she wanted. "I want…" her breath caught as he lifted her higher, kissing her firm stomach as he moved lower, never ceasing in his nipping and kissing.

"This?" He kissed the flat of her stomach just above her core. She could only gasp and smile as he worked lower. He took his time with her, thoroughly enjoying each and every single moan and whimper, kissing his way back up to her neck, smiling as he shrugged out of his pants. She bit down onto his shoulder as he thrust roughly against her, her small body trembling with wanton lust for her dark gunman. He memorized every gasp, moan, whispered decleration of love that came from her. He kissed her closed eyes as her peak approached, whispered words of love against her, he held her to his chest as her nails dug deep into his back and his name spilled from her lips like a secret prayer. He shuddered against her, feeling her all around him more deeply than he'd felt anything before.

"I love you, Yuffie." He gasped, still holding her against him, carefully slipping her little nightgown back on.

"I love you…" She kissed him soundly, deeply, more passionately than any kiss so far that night. "…Vincent."

He led her back down to her window, giving her one last kiss before making his way back to his own room. Exhaustion creeping into her limbs as she made her way to her bed.

"Don't you ever sleep, woman?" Tifa giggled at Yuffie as she nearly tumbled to the floor, hissing as she stubbed her toe on something on the ground. "You know you two have more sex in and in more places than most newly weds even do. You have some sort of weird sex habit I should be careful to ignore?" Tifa cocked an elegant eyebrow at her friend. Yuffie burst into a fit of giggles, struggling to come up with some sort of excuse.

"He's just that gorgeous, Tifa. Those muscles, that smile, his voice…and that blasted eyebrow! He's just _too_ good to ignore." Yuffie sighed dreamily. "Besides, Miss Hypocrite, you aren't so innocent." Tifa smiled and shrugged, not arguing the point. "You know…" Tifa slid under the sheets next to Yuffie, watching her intently. "It's like everything has finally come full circle. You, me…even the world seems happier you know?"

"It's just how Aeris had always wanted it to be. She just wanted everyone to finally be happy." Tifa rested with one arm behind her head. "It took almost my whole life for Cloud to see me…I had nearly given up." Tifa turned to Yuffie. "I did give up, then he came home…and…" Tifa's eyes misted over. "And it was like nothing had ever happened. He smiled like nothing had _ever _been wrong." Yuffie smiled at that. Tifa was now four months into her first pregnancy, she and Cloud had married two years after Yuffie and Vincent. Yuffie and Vincent hadn't really decided whether or not to have children yet. Yuffie was still young and Vincent wanted to enjoy as much of her as he could. He knew it was greedy and told her as much, but Yuffie always told him she felt the same way. She wasn't ready for kids. Him, yes…kids? Not so much. She smiled in the knowledge that they _could_ one day have kids, if they wanted to. For now she'd be happy playing aunty to Tifa's little brood.

"I love you, Tifa." Yuffie broke the silence suddenly. Tifa glanced at her in the dark, smiling brightly at the younger woman.

"I love you, too, Yuf." She closed her eyes, smile still playing at the corners of her mouth. They were content; the world was at peace, finally. She thought of Aeris, how much she loved the flower girl, how hard it must have been for her to watch as they all struggled through their own trials. Tifa briefly wondered if she could have done it, prayed to save the world knowing the world had been responsible for her murderer. Could she willingly sacrifice herself for the greater good?

'_You did once, didn't you?'_ Tifa could almost smell the lilies she always grew. _'You did for her, for your friends so that they might have the strength to fight.' _She thought back to the fight with the clone and Ark. She had died, she'd seen Aeris, been to the Promised Land, and Aeris simply smiled at her and said it wasn't her time just yet. Tifa woke with a pounding headache and burns everywhere.

'_I didn't even think of it that way…It just seemed like what I had to do.' _Tifa thought for a moment, realizing that was exactly the point she'd been going for. It wasn't _if_ Tifa would do it, it was _when_. She knew, without a doubt she'd do it again. Just as Yuffie had, Vincent, Cloud, Aeris…they'd all sacrificed something for one another.

'_And now you have something beautiful to look forward to, a future worth living for…'_ Tifa absently ran her fingers across her growing belly.

'_A perfect future, ne? Thank you…thank you so much Aeris…' _With that she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep. Tomorrow was the end of their vacation, Yuffie had ruling to do and they all had lives to get back to. It was every year at the same time as Yuffie's anniversary that the crew got together again to celebrate their 'normal' lives. Tifa smiled, feeling that warmth of security and love envelop her as she drifted off to sleep, dreaming of what the future would hold for her and her child.

_**xXx**_

_**This is it, the end of this mini epic. Hope everyone enjoyed it, I enjoyed writing it. **_

_**Thank you to Sorceress Fujin, Valentine's Ninja, Mako Storm, Silvan Arrow, and of course Coquettish Siren. Thank you all very much :)**_


End file.
